Happy Birthday Carrick

Today’s a significant one for everyone here at Carrick, being the fifth anniversary of our launch in October 2018.

Incredible to think that five short years ago we had little more than a plan, a VAT number, and a smile!

Since then, we’ve grown into a business employing 18 staff, with a book of over £70m, and have provided nearly £200m of new finance to SME’s of all shapes and sizes across the UK.  At the same time, we’ve developed a reputation across the asset finance broker sector for punching well above our weight from a service point of view – something we’re very proud of and determined to maintain.

A massive thanks to all our colleagues, funders, brokers and customers for everything you’ve done to help get us to this notable milestone. We’d never have achieved what we have without your support and we’re very grateful for the faith you’ve placed in us, particularly during some of the challenging periods the world has gone through over the last few years.

We’re very pleased with the progress made so far and look forward to developing the Carrick business further over the years ahead.

Happy birthday to us!

Meet the Team – Joanne Crawley

 

Meet the Team – Anton Scott

 

Meet the Team – Vajinder Bal

 

Carrick: Four Years Young

It seems incredible, but that’s four years since Carrick opened for business. Looks like time does go quickly when you’re having fun!

We’re all very proud of what we’ve built up since our launch in October 2018. We’re also super-appreciative of the help we’ve had from all our brokers, customers and other business partners who’ve helped us gain the momentum and success we have.

We think we’ve laid down some solid foundations for long-term, sustainable growth and are looking forward to the next few years with a mixture of excitement and quiet confidence. And yes, we’re absolutely determined to retain our strong service offering, because people tell us every day that service is our key differentiator.

So, whether you borrow from us, introduce business to us, or work with us in some other way – thank you for your support and everything you’ve done to help get us to our fourth birthday. You’ve been amazing and (warning: cliché approaching), we couldn’t have done it without you!

Happy Birthday to Us!

Further Expansion of the Carrick Team

Carrick Asset Finance has today announced the appointment of Vajinder Bal as Senior Broker Manager. Vajinder will be responsible for the development of Carrick’s broker connections across the North and Midlands.

This is an entirely new role, largely modelled on the successful appointment in early 2021 of Anton Scott, who represents Carrick in the South, and will fuel the continued upwards trajectory of the Glasgow-based business which, despite the challenging trading environment of the last couple of years, has more than doubled its lending portfolio over that time

Commenting on the appointment, Carrick’s sales director Iain Corbett said:

 

‘I’m really pleased to have Vajinder joining us. He’s got great knowledge of our market and we consider ourselves very fortunate to have him come on board as part of the team.

He’s an experienced individual with a good profile across the intermediary sector and has a great network. More importantly though, he’s highly respected and goes about his business in a way that we feel reflects our own business values and culture.

Vajinder completely buys into the service-orientation that’s central to the Carrick offering and he’ll play a critical part in helping us achieve our significant growth plans for 2022 and beyond. We’ve increased our broker panel by 60% since the beginning of the pandemic and feel Vajinder is the best person to develop our profile and business levels with the high quality panel we are building up.

 

Vajinder will work from a base in Greater Manchester and be responsible for both the development of new intermediary relationships as well as the management of some existing Carrick connections in his territory. When asked about the decision to join Carrick he said:

 

‘I’ve watched the development of Carrick since it entered the market a few years ago and always heard positive things about them from my network. When the opportunity arose to join them I didn’t hesitate, and I’m really excited by the prospect of working in such an agile and quickly developing company’.   

 

Carrick operates as a lender in the asset finance sector and focuses on funding business-critical assets for SME customers sourced through a panel of approved brokers. The company was established in 2018 and trades from a base in Glasgow.

Asset finance market grew by 80% in April 2021

New figures released today by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that total asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) grew by 80% in April 2021 compared with the same month in 2020. In the first four months of 2021, new business was 15% higher than in the same period in 2020.

The commercial vehicle finance sector reported new business up by 140% in April compared with the same month in 2020.  The plant and machinery and business equipment finance sectors reported new business up by 58% and 43% respectively, over the same period. By contrast, the IT equipment finance sector reported new business 13% lower in April than in the same month in 2020.

Commenting on the figures, Geraldine Kilkelly, Director of Research and Chief Economist at the FLA, said:

“The strong growth reported by the asset finance market in April was not unexpected given the adverse impact of the first lockdown on new business levels during the second quarter of last year. The latest figures show that the recovery in April was broad-based, with finance provided for investment in a wide range of vehicles, machinery and equipment. The fall in IT equipment finance new business reflected the relative strength of this sector at the start of the pandemic.

“If the industry maintains the performance we have seen in recent months, it would be on course to reach its pre-pandemic annual new business total by the end of 2021.  We urge the Government to recognize the importance of the asset finance market in supporting business investment and extend the super-deduction allowance for expenditure on qualifying plant and machinery to include leasing.”

Apr

 2021

% change on prev. year

3 months to

Apr 2021

% change on prev. year

12 months to

Apr 2021

% change on prev. year
Total FLA asset finance (£m)

2,918

80

8,377

26

28,712

-13
Total excluding high value (£m)

2,784

80

7,810

24

26,763

-12
 

Data Extracts:

 

By asset:

Plant and machinery finance (£m)

697

58

1,938

27

6,271

-8
Commercial vehicle finance (£m)

731

140

2,226

40

7,576

-8
IT equipment finance (£m)

131

-13

497

-18

2,314

-19
Business equipment finance (£m)

148

43

463

2

1,722

-21
Car finance (£m)

819

94

2,174

22

7,571

-16
Aircraft, ships and rolling stock finance (£m)

71

261

112

73

360

-32
 

By channel:

Direct finance (£m)

1,270

36

3,454

9

12,293

-19
Broker-introduced finance (£m)

626

128

1,828

41

5,905

-7
Sales finance (£m)

887

160

2,528

36

8,566

-4
 

By product:

Finance leasing (£m)

278

41

861

1

3,468

-13
Operating leasing (£m)

523

125

1,548

25

5,538

-14
Lease/Hire purchase (£m)

1,635

76

4,557

26

15,252

-14
Other finance (£m)

363

55

1,036

45

3,479

-1

Further People Investment at Carrick

Carrick Asset Finance has today announced the appointment of Anton Scott as Senior Broker Manager.

This is a new role created to help fuel the continued growth of the Glasgow-based business which, despite the difficult market conditions of last year, has achieved portfolio growth of 50% over the last 12 months

Anton brings with him strong experience of the asset finance intermediary sector, having previously led a broker sales team for Aldermore Bank, as well as wider leasing and commercial lending experience gained through  management roles with Dawsongroup Finance and Bank of Scotland.

Commenting on the appointment, Carrick’s sales director Iain Corbett said:

 

‘We’re extremely pleased Anton is joining the team and consider ourselves very lucky to have secured his services.

He’s an experienced individual with a great reputation in the part of the market we focus on and has a first-class network. As of much importance as anything else though, we feel he conducts himself in a way that reflects our own business values and he completely buys into the service-orientation that’s central to the Carrick offering.

We’re happy to have Anton representing us in the market and he’ll play a pivotal part in helping us achieve our significant growth objectives for 2021 and beyond. He’s the fourth addition to the Carrick team since the beginning of the initial lockdown in March last year, which I think demonstrates the extent of our commitment to the asset finance broker segment and illustrates how serious we are about ongoing expansion.’           

    

Anton will work from a base in Hampshire and be responsible for both the development of new intermediary relationships as well as the management of some of the existing Carrick broker panel. When asked about the challenge ahead he said:

 

‘I’ve been aware of Carrick since they launched a couple of years ago and have always heard good things about them. When the opportunity came up to join the company I didn’t hesitate and am very much looking forward to helping take the business on to the next stage of its development.

Working in a  young, agile business has great appeal, particularly when there’s so much economic uncertainty around, and I can’t wait to get started. I’m very excited to be joining a company which has remained so totally committed to growth and service excellence, despite the obvious wider trading difficulties.’                 

 

Carrick operates as a lender in the asset finance sector and focuses on funding business-critical assets for SME customers sourced through a panel of approved brokers. The company was established in 2018 with the assistance of a financing facility from Bank of London & Middle East and the businesses continue to enjoy a close working relationship.

Management Changes at Carrick Asset Finance

Carrick Asset Finance has announced the appointment of Martin Stewart as Managing Director.

He takes over from Gerry Moon who is moving to the position of Non-Executive Chairman at the firm.

Moon, a well-known industry figure who has previously led UK asset finance operations for Fortis Lease and Macquarie, said:

‘We’ve assembled a really strong management team at Carrick and I’m extremely pleased Martin has agreed to take on responsibility for leading us into the next phase of our growth.

I have worked with Martin for nearly 20 years through various businesses and there’s no doubt he has the energy, skills and experience to drive us forward. He has carried out several senior finance roles in each of the leasing companies I have been involved in, and he excelled in supporting those businesses achieve their strategic objectives.      

Although I will be stepping back from day-to-day activities, as Non-Executive Chairman I will continue to work closely with the Board on a variety of matters including wider strategic issues and also on the ongoing Coronavirus’ pandemic.’

The Board team to which Moon refers includes Iain Corbett, Gordon MacGregor and Gary Slavin who respectively hold sales, risk and operations directorships and have some 75 years of combined industry experience between them.

Martin commented:

‘I am delighted to be taking up the role of Managing Director at Carrick. Since establishing the company under Gerry’s leadership in October 2018, we have grown quickly into a stable and sustainable business with a very positive market profile. I am very much looking forward to taking us onto the next stage of our evolution’

Martin further commented: ‘ the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic presents serious challenges and it is of paramount importance to help our intermediary network and their customers through what is a very difficult period. I know Gerry and the rest of the board are of a similar mindset’

Asked about Moon’s decision to move into a non-executive role, Stewart also added:

‘Gerry has contributed a huge amount to getting this business to where it is today, and it is essential we continue to benefit from the drive and focus for which he is so well-known across the asset finance industry.

He is vastly experienced and, along with Bruce Wood, we now have an enviable capability at non-executive level that my management colleagues and I intend to utilise to its fullest extent to not only guide us through the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic but also the challenges that will undoubtedly lie ahead.’    

Carrick operates as a lender in the asset finance sector and focuses on funding business-critical assets for SME customers sourced through a panel of approved brokers. The company was established with the assistance of a financing facility from Bank of London & Middle East and the businesses continue to enjoy a close working relationship.

18 months of Carrick Asset Finance

Here’s a short, informal video celebrating Carrick’s first 18 months in business