LendInvest has hired former OneSavings Bank executive chairman Stephan Wilcke as a senior adviser as it looks to broaden its mortgage proposition.
Wilcke will be the first member of the lender’s newly formed ‘advisory board’, where he will advise LendInvest on its corporate strategy to maintain operating standards and extend into the broader mortgage market.
Wilcke said: “Having followed the progress of the team for the past three years in various capacities, I have been incredibly impressed by what LendInvest has achieved.
“They are building a company with a distinctive culture that blends maturity with a desire to do things differently. It’s an exciting time to come on board.”
Wilcke was at OneSavings Bank until its IPO in June 2014, while after its flotation he served as a non-executive director on the bank’s board until May 2016.
Previously he was chief executive of HM Treasury’s asset protection agency that ran from 2009 to 2012 to help the UK’s most troubled banks repair their balance sheets and stem losses caused by toxic assets.
Wilcke is currently a commissioner of the Jersey Financial Services Commission and chairman of Amigo Loans, the UK’s largest guarantor lending business. He was a former non-executive director of Greece’s Hellenic Financial Stability Fund.
Christian Faes, co-founder and chief executive of LendInvest, said: “LendInvest is now a leading name in specialist property finance, but we make no secret of our goal to be a mainstream financial services brand.
“The financial services world is one that’s subject to ever-growing layers of regulation, with new entrants like us under intense scrutiny.
“An open door to Stephan’s battle-hardened skills and extensive network will be invaluable to us as we continue to grow.”
Since founding in 2013 LendInvest has originated over £660m of loans for borrowers seeking mortgage finance on terms lasting up to three years.
In the past year the company grew its team from 30 to 100 employees and attracted £39m in equity investment from two international investors, Beijing Kunlun and Atomico.
