Alantra advises Bank North on senior financing facility to support new lending

Alantra, the independent global mid-market investment bank, has advised Bank North Limited (“Bank North” or “the Company”), the UK’s first truly regional business bank of the modern era, on the design and execution of a senior financing facility up to £50 million with Insight Investment.

The facility will support the expansion of Bank North’s early lending activities to UK SMEs. Following on the launch of Bank North’s first ‘regional pod’ in Manchester earlier this year, the facility will support lending in additional pods expected to be rolled out in the UK next year.

Founded in 2018 with a mission to be the UK’s first truly regional bank of the modern era, Bank North successfully received a banking licence from the UK Prudential Regulatory Authority (Authorised with Restrictions – ‘AWR’) in August 2021 alongside the close of a £20 million Series A funding round.

Alantra advised the Company on the commercial and structural aspects of the transaction, supporting the Bank North team in market sounding and selection of the preferred counterparty, as well as assisting in the negotiation of final terms.

David Broadbent, co-founder and CFO of Bank North said: “We have been delighted with the support provided by the Alantra team. This represents a significant strategic milestone for the business and is further validation of the Bank North proposition. It enables us to bring Bank North to the market and provide much needed support to UK SMEs; and it represents a fruitful relationship with Insight, a market leader and a high-calibre partner of real strength.’

Jeremy Deacon, Senior Portfolio Manager at Insight Investment, commented: “UK SMEs are a significant focus area for our secured finance strategies. Supporting and scaling growing businesses such as Bank North helps us to source the risk-adjusted returns that we seek for our actively-managed portfolios.”

James Fadel, managing director at Alantra, remarked: “We are extremely pleased to have advised Bank North on the execution of this important transaction. This facility further validates Bank North’s attractive product proposition and supports the team’s ambitions to shake up the UK SME lending market”.

David Rochow and Francesco Confuorti were key members of the Alantra team dedicated to this transaction. The Bank North team was led by Matt Dobson, Treasurer, and Martin Elliott.