After just three months in his role as Head of Strategy at West One Loans, ex-Tiuta CEO and bridging veteran George Patellis is no longer an employee of the lender.

Patellis was employed back in July of this year to head-up West One’s distribution strategy to develop more introducer relationships.

He is now thought to be working for West One on a consultancy/advisory basis.

Chairman Duncan Kreeger, who once said the hiring of Patellis was a testament to West One Loans’ ambition, has cited “too much travelling” as the reason behind the decision.

Prior to this, Patellis was CEO at bridging lender Tiuta Plc – now in liquidation – from 2009 to 2011 and has taken up various other consultancy roles since 2006.

Patellis was also hired by Montello Bridging Finance as a senior advisor in July 2011 to assist the lender with a number of strategic projects, including assessing the viability of establishing an office for Montello in North America whilst he was based in New York.

At the time of announcing Patellis’ role Duncan Kreeger said: “George has an unrivalled track record in the bridging industry. With his wealth of knowledge and experience, George will be able to unlock doors for us in the packager and distribution world that no one else can.  He combines entrepreneurial flair and negotiation skills with a deep knowledge of the market. He’ll be an invaluable asset.”

George Patellis added at the time: “The West One set-up is genuinely entrepreneurial.  We have a motivated and ambitious group of people here who want to take the business to the next level.  The daily buzz in the office is invigorating – the energy of the company is there for all to see.  I’m looking forward to the challenge of developing new relationships and improving the distribution side of the business.  With so many new entrants in the market, competition is fierce.  Hopefully my experience and business development skills will give West One an extra edge.”

Where will George go next?