Avamore Capital appoints new chairman

By Bridging Loan Directory 3rd May 2023

Avamore Capital has appointed Eric Barnett as its first non-executive chairman of the board.

It comes following the company’s notable success over the years and aligns with plans to implement strong corporate governance, underpinning the next phase of growth.

Eric was the previous CEO of Kleinwort Hambros Bank for 11 years and has a history on the board of directors for a number of companies, ranging from financial institutions to private equity backed, non-financial service businesses.

Avamore has had a long-standing desire to gradually build its institutional profile and corporate structure while maintaining an ambitious and entrepreneurial culture and this appointment represents the realisation of this goal.

As Chairman of Avamore, Eric will lead the board and provide guidance, inputting into a wide range of business matters, including strategy and corporate planning.

This move follows Avamore’s particularly strong performance over the past 12 months. 2022 saw the lender surpass £500m in total lending, with no impairments suffered, and this prudent approach to deploying capital and risk management has also led to exceptional financials for the group with another record year.

Results have allowed the lender to heavily reinvest back into the infrastructure of the company, contributing to an acceleration in the maturity of the business as it makes a conscious effort to add greater rigour and structure to operations.

With ambitious plans to become a £500m+ p.a. lender in the next 5 years, Avamore is committed to using its resources to prepare to be one of the largest providers of development and bridging finance to the UK SME market.

As it continues to adopt measures which are reflective of a business beyond its years, the lender can ensure that it will build on the foundations already laid and sets a high standard for the level of corporate governance expected in the years to come.

Avamore Capital CEO, D’mitri Zaprzala commented:

“We are delighted to welcome Eric to the board. His experience will have a huge impact on the business and the appointment aligns with our on-going aims to accelerate our growth.

Now, more than ever, strategic planning and careful management is critical and having the certainty that we are prioritising corporate governance of the business puts us in a good position to deliver on our ambitions in the years ahead.”

Eric Barnett commented:

“Avamore is at a really exciting stage in its development, and I appreciate being able to join them at this time. It is already one of the most dynamic non-banking lenders in the country and is now poised to move into the next phase of its expansion.

I’m looking forward to working with the talented team at Avamore and having a hand in helping them achieve their long-term ambitions.”