United Trust Bank (UTB) is doubling down on its mission to bolster housebuilders and developers in the South of England, bringing seasoned banker Andy Porter on board as Senior Director in its business development crew.
The move comes hot on the heels of a cracking 2024 for the specialist lender, which saw it greenlight over £1 billion in funding for residential and mixed-use projects across England and Wales—and 2025 is already shaping up to be a belter.
Porter, with 25 years of real estate finance under his belt from stints at RBS, Barclays, and most recently as Business Development Director at Close Brothers, is set to hit the ground running.
He’ll be steering builders and developers across the South towards tailored, competitive funding for everything from build-to-sell homes to build-to-rent schemes.
“UTB has established an excellent reputation as an experienced and reliable relationship lender,” Porter says, clearly chuffed to join the fold. “I am excited to have joined the Bank at this busy time as it continues to support SME housebuilders and targets further lending growth this year and in the future.”
He’s not the only fresh face at UTB. Andy Thomson recently stepped into the newly minted role of Senior Director – Operational Real Estate, zeroing in on build-to-rent loans with an eye on branching into student digs and co-living down the line.
Adam Bovingdon, Head of Property Development at UTB, reckons the timing couldn’t be better:
“Andy has joined us at an excellent time as we’re seeing high levels of enquiries from housebuilders and developers looking to take advantage of increasing activity in the market as well as the Government’s commitment to get Britain building.”
Reflecting on last year’s wins, he adds, “2024 was a successful year for the Bank’s Property Development team. At the close we were helping our developer customers create around 4500 new homes across England and Wales and we are aiming to help housebuilders deliver even more in 2025.”