Recognise Bank supports professional practice and healthcare sectors with new hires

20 July 2021

New sector specialists will target SMEs including architects, law firms, pharmacies and dentists

Recognise Bank has signalled its intention to provide the best lending support to the UK’s small and medium-sized businesses by appointing two new industry sector specialists to lead the propositions.

Robert Hulse joins Recognise from Shire Professional Funding as Head of Professional Practices and will focus on businesses such as lawyers, accountants, architects and vets. Recognise believes this is an important yet overlooked sector and has designed a range of Professional Practice Loans for funding needs ranging from tax, insurance and VAT to office refurbishments and management buy-outs.

Robert said: “It’s fantastic that Recognise is committed to developing financial products specifically for professional practices, especially when so many other banks and lenders are becoming selective in the professions they work with and are even withdrawing, causing major funding gaps. I am looking forward to driving the development of this area and helping to support many more businesses.”

The other new appointment is Jawad Anjum who joins as Head of Healthcare and will initially be focusing on the medical sector, including businesses like pharmacies and dental practices. Commenting on his new role, Jawad said: “The role of medical professionals such as pharmacists during the pandemic confirms just how important they are. Recognise aims to become a funding partner that understands their business and will help them grow.

“Funding in the medical sector is becoming harder as a lot of banks have tightened their criteria and have little or no local presence. Recognise is here to offer accessibility and expert knowledge, alongside first-class service.”

Angela Norman, Head of Corporate Development for Recognise, believes these sectors are poorly served by the mainstream banks. She said: “When we were setting up Recognise we identified a need within the professional practice and medical sectors. Both are important industry sectors for the UK, but very few mainstream banks were offering loans tailored to their business needs and financial circumstances.

“Recognise is committed to supporting professional practice and medical firms, and now, with the appointment of Robert and Jawad, we have experts who understand the unique challenges of these sectors. We aim to become trusted partners for these businesses and their brokers by helping them achieve their ambitions.”

The new appointments follow recent announcements of six new Business Development Managers for Recognise covering London and the Midlands, as well as the North West and Yorkshire, as the bank builds out its team.

Recognise was created to offer SMEs relationship-led service and support, backed by the latest cloud computer technology to make lending decisions quick and speed up the access to funds. The bank has a network of regional hubs in London, Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds, with more to follow.

In addition to professional practice loans, Recognise also offers commercial mortgages, bridging loans and working capital loans, with professional buy-to-let mortgages to follow soon. Since opening in November 2020, the bank has already received £500 million in loan applications, aiming to provide more than £1.5 billion of business lending over the next five years.

Recognise will also be launching both business and personal savings accounts later in the year.