Hilco Real Estate Finance has appointed London-based development and bridge lending specialist Simon Pollins.
Pollins joins the specialist lender’s UK team as a senior business development consultant.
He is a qualified chartered accountant and has more than 30 years’ experience in residential property lending.
For the past 10 years, he has set up and run specialist bridging and development lenders.
He has also worked with the family offices of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) throughout his career, as well as having been involved in complex pan-European transactions.
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Ambitious lending targets
Andrew Ward, managing director of Hilco Real Estate Finance, said: “Simon has deep experience helping new and growing lenders gain traction in the market, especially focusing on agile lenders [that] offer fast, flexible secured lending on property assets.
“He’s a great addition to our growing team that has already been recognised with industry newcomer nominations, and he will be instrumental in helping us to meet and exceed our ambitious 2025 lending targets.”
Short-term loans
The lender launched in 2023 to provide bespoke, flexible property finance solutions nationwide.
It offers short-term loans for growth, acquisition opportunities, development exits and refinancing exits, with loan sizes ranging from £3m to £100m-plus.
Recent lending deals include a £10m bridge loan against two care homes, a £13m exit loan secured against 24 London apartments, a £23m facility secured against a major roadside infrastructure site, and an £8.3m facility secured against a Surrey mansion home.
Headquartered in London, Hilco Real Estate Finance is a team of highly experienced finance professionals based across the UK.
It is a fully integrated subsidiary of Hilco Global (Hilco), the multinational financial services group with almost $5bn of assets under management (AUM).
Pollins said: “I have watched HREF’s early progress and numerous transactions since its launch last year, and I am excited to be joining a new lender at such an early stage of its journey.
“In a fast-changing lending market, HREF’s offering in the sub-£100m lending space is in high demand, and its approach to streamlining access to funding resonates in the property sector at a time when many mainstream lenders are unable to compete.”
