As we dive into the thick of 2025, we’ve packed this issue with the exclusive stories, data, and a few surprises—everything you need to understand the shifting landscape of our market.

Our cover story this month is a real game-changer: the Annual UK Bridging Market Survey, crafted in partnership with EY, offers a snapshot of the trends defining the sector. There are big shifts at play since last year, particularly in the surge of competition and the growing adoption of AI. These themes are front and centre in this issue as we explore seismic changes—and how to ride the wave to stay ahead.

Technology’s influence is impossible to ignore, and Hypercore is leading the charge with its data-first loan management platform. This tool aims to revolutionise risk management and streamline automation, setting lenders up for scalable growth. Plus, we’re diving into the numbers with exclusive commercial property insights from VAS Group’s latest valuation report.

We’ve also had our finger on the pulse of the most exciting players shaping the future. In Cannes, we caught up with some incredible minds at the Ladies Who Cannes event, where the conversations were as rich as the weather was... wet. But the rain didn’t dampen the excitement—if anything, it made the ideas flow even faster.

United Trust Bank opens their doors to reveal their brand refresh and the game plan for dominating the unregulated bridging space in 2025 and beyond. It’s a story of reinvention, ambition, and the kind of innovation that’s changing the game.

Meanwhile, Octane Capital’s Josh Knight gives us a sneak peek into the high-growth areas within bridging, highlighting the opportunities brokers should be watching. On the other side of the country, Empire Global and Allsop weigh in on how brokerages outside of the South are creating their own success stories, while JMW Solicitors breaks down recent legal changes that could affect lenders looking for breathing space.

We also explore the rising power of social media in the broker community. Manuka Media shares a blueprint for brokers to harness platforms like never before. Plus, if you’re wondering about the growing role of packagers in the market, we’ve got the inside scoop, analysing OMS Systems’ data to uncover why brokers are increasingly turning to packagers for bridging solutions.

And we’ve got some tough questions on the table. In our broker roundtable, we tackle the issue of whether smaller deals are getting overlooked by brokers and lenders. Are they charging higher fees for these smaller deals—and is that really fair? Meanwhile, Albatross Capital examines the impact of lenders pushing up to 75% LTV on an AVM alone—and what this could mean for the sustainability of the market.

It’s an interesting time in our sector, and we’re here to help you navigate it with clarity and confidence. Whether you’re a lender, broker, or investor, this issue will inspire you to think bigger and act faster.

Happy reading.