Commercial mortgage move: one year on

It’s been a year since MT Finance launched its commercial mortgage business with a £2.5bn JP Morgan facility. How would you sum up the first 12 months?

The past year has been incredibly exciting and rewarding. Launching a proposition is always a significant undertaking, but there has been a genuine buzz surrounding this product line from day one. Personally, it has been a fantastic opportunity to translate my own professional work ethic and experience into the MT Finance framework. The business has a can-do culture, one that prioritises pragmatic, commonsense lending solutions that borrowers are looking for, and it has been incredibly fulfilling to marry that approach with the specific needs of the commercial sector. 

At the time, you spoke about addressing an underserved part of the market. Has that opportunity proven to be as significant as you anticipated?

Absolutely. From a trading perspective, performance has aligned perfectly with our initial expectations. We identified that first-time landlords (FTLs) and first-time buyers often being overlooked by high-street lenders, whose rigid criteria can be a barrier to entry, particularly around asset type or borrowing experience. By offering flexible products designed specifically for these segments, we have seen a strong pipeline of applications from borrowers who would typically struggle to secure mainstream funding. It has been a validation of our strategy; seeing this previously underserved part of the market finally getting the support it needs thanks to our specialised risk appetite and product proposition has been a major highlight of the year. 

Read the full interview here.