EXCLUSIVE: Rodrigues quits Vida

Rodrigues is still in situ and will not receive gardening leave as ULS is not a direct competitor.

EXCLUSIVE: Rodrigues quits Vida

Karen Rodrigues has quit as corporate sales manager at Vida Homeloans and will join conveyancing firm ULS Technology as director of sales in April.

Rodrigues is still in situ and will not receive gardening leave as ULS is not a direct competitor.

Her move comes on the back of a shakeup at the lender which has seen the departure of both David Tweedy, chief executive of parent Belmont Green Finance, and Guy Batchelor, managing director of Vida Homeloans.

Tweedy and Batchelor both left the organisation separately for personal reasons.

Rodrigues’ decision comes in the wake of an internal restructure which saw Anth Mooney installed as chief executive of Belmont Green.

He was previously director of financial services at Virgin Money before moving on to become managing director of Thomas Cook Money.

Louisa Sedgwick, managing director - mortgages at Vida, said: “I can confirm that Karen Rodrigues will be leaving Vida Homeloans.

"Karen has been with us since the launch of the business in 2016 and has been a great team member, working with key partners including networks and clubs.

"I want to wish Karen the very best for her future career as she moves to a different role in the mortgage industry.”

Steve Goodall, chief executive at ULS technology, added: “I am delighted to welcome Karen Rodriguesto our team.

"Karen joins ULS at an exciting time as we continue to rapidly evolve our products and transform the consumers experience of buying, selling and remortgaging a home through our DigitalMove platform.

"Her experience, skills, and knowledge at Aldermore, One Savings Bankand most recentlyVida Homeloans, will really enhance our innovative propositions for our mortgage intermediary, conveyancer and lender partners."

This follows news that the lender has made a series of spring rate cuts designed to highlight its competitive criteria for residential customers who have improving credit profiles.

The cuts apply to the lender’s standard, fee saver, Help to Buy and Right to Buy products and are focussed on Vida’s lending tiers which cater for residential customers who have had a complex credit profile in the last 24 months and who are not well served by high street lenders.

Vida is also reducing rates on its buy-to-let range, including standard, fee saver, expat and HMO/MUB products.

Highlights include residential 2-year fixed rates reduced by up to 0.65% and buy-to-let 2-year fixed rates reduced by up to 0.25%.

Sedgwick said of the rate changes: “Whether it’s an unconventional income pattern or improving credit profile, customers with more complex circumstances have traditionally been underserved by the high street.

"At Vida, we can help these borrowers make their property dreams a reality by supporting them with a flexible range of good value products.

“Specialist lending is continuing to grow and has become an important focus for the intermediary sector.

"With the high street lenders’ perception of a ‘perfect borrower’ not supporting every day customer needs, specialist lenders play a crucial role in helping turn generation rent into generation own by catering for those underserved by mainstream banks and building societies.”

More to follow...