Commercial 'still a specialist sector'

As the commercial finance marketplace has expanded with new lenders, new intermediaries have also entered the arena. However Mustard warned that a complete knowledge of the market was needed, and intermediaries who rushed in to realise the potential benefits of offering commercial finance could become snowed under with the market needs and conditions.

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John Ford, director Mustard Commercial Finance, said: “This changing marketplace has seen the emergence of many supposed commercial experts who offer to solve all of the intermediaries’ problems with access to only one or two specialist lenders. This, in my opinion, is a recipe for disaster."

He added: “Clients use intermediaries generally because they believe that they will be able to offer them the most competitive products to suit their own personal circumstances and likewise, if they choose to use them for their business borrowing requirements, they will expect to be offered the same level of expertise and the same whole of market offering that they are used to on their other business.”

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Melanie Bien, associate director for Savills, said: “Commercial finance is a very niche market and is quite specified and the problem we have is in recruiting people who have no knowledge, you can learn a certain amount in the job but you do need an inside track on the market.”