uk news > IN BRIEF
CAR FINANCE IN 2010
More people chose to buy a new car using finance through a car dealer than any other finance option in 2010. Some 52.1 percent of new cars (equating to 499,143 units) were bought using dealer motor finance, according to the latest statistics from the Finance & Leasing Association.
Dealer
motor finance grew in popularity during 2010 compared to 2009, when only 45.8 percent of new cars were bought using dealer finance. In 2010, half a million people used dealer finance to buy a new car, and motor lenders provided £6.4 billion of funds. In the used car market, motor finance helped 635,000 people to buy a car, with £5.9 billion in advances. Commenting on December’s motor finance figures, Paul Harrison, Head of Motor Finance, said, “Overall, the number of cars financed last year was up by 4 percent across all markets as buyers took advantage of the competitive deals on offer. However, while dealers had a good year in 2010, they are cautious about the future. We had previously forecast that the VAT rise in January might lead to a rush of sales in December, as consumers tried to beat the rise, as it did ahead of the VAT increase in January 2009. “However, this did not happen. Consumer confidence is at its lowest for around two years, and this is reflected in December’s figures, which showed a fall in the total number of new cars bought using dealer finance, while used car sales were flat.”
SMALL BUSINESS RELUCTANT TO BORROW? A recent study into small business borrowing propensities is being interpreted as proof of a reluctance on the part of small businesses to borrow from banks. Presumably the message it is trying to convey is that it’s not banks not wanting to lend, but businesses not wanting to borrow, also coincidentally the claim of the British Bankers Association. The most recent Business Banking Study, carried out by Charterhouse Research, has shown that small businesses seem to be reluctant to approach the banks when it comes to seeking finance. Over the last 12 months, only a third of businesses with annual turnover under £1 billion have sought some form of finance from the
Banks.Mark Dennis,
Director at
Charterhouse Research, says, “In a market where businesses seem to be crying out for help, only the minority appear to be reaching
10 Peter Cartwright
AnaCap new appointment A
naCap Financial Partners (“AnaCap”), the European private equity firm specialising in the financial services sector (more than €1 billion under management), has appointed Peter
Cartwright as Co-Managing Partner. He joins Joe Giannamore as Co-Managing Partner with immediate effect. Cartwright, one of the founding Partners at AnaCap, will continue in his role as Head of the Business Services team at AnaCap. In that capacity he leads the firms engagement with its portfolio companies pre and post investment to enhance their operational performance and growth.
An early acquisition, Aldermore Bank, has rapidly been transformed into a fast growing bank focused on lending to SMEs, and to the residential mortgage market. As well as its role in creating Aldermore Bank, AnaCap has had similar success with their acquisition and launch of Mediterranean Bank in Malta, which is
already building a very successful position as a wealth management bank. Both banks have demonstrated significant improvements in their performance, risk management and controls. Aldermore has reported that overall new lending to all customers, including SMEs, more than quadrupled in Q4 2010, compared to Q2 2010 Prior to joining AnaCap in April 2006, Cartwright was Commercial Director at Direct Group, a leading private equity backed insurance services provider having previously held senior roles within GMAC, and the UK Consumer Finance division of GE Capital.
Joe Giannamore, Co-Managing Partner of AnaCap, said, “Peter has over twenty years operational experience across a diverse range of financial service businesses, the kind of hands-on, problem solving experience that is still too rare in the private equity industry.
“Peter also has invaluable experience of having been on the board of a private equity backed financial services business, which gives him a unique insight into private equity buy-outs from the perspective of an investee company. This rare combination of experience has made him a key asset to the firm.”
ank of London and The Middle East (“BLME”), the London based wholesale, Sharia’a compliant bank announced that it has received a license from the Central Bank of Bahrain (“CBB”) to open an office in the Kingdom of Bahrain. This will be the bank’s first overseas office in the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) reinforcing the bank’s ambition to provide a bridge between the UK and the GCC to offer a range of investment opportunities. BLME provides a wide range of Shariah- compliant banking services and advice to businesses and individuals, through its five core divisions of Private Banking, Corporate Advisory, Corporate Banking, Asset Management and Markets. The Kingdom of Bahrain is an ideal location for BLME to open an office.
BLME opens in Bahrain B
Having created and implemented regulations specifically designed for Islamic Financial Institutions, it represents a key hub for Islamic finance in the GCC region. Humphrey Percy, CEO of BLME, said, “Bahrain provides BLME with a base for its operations in the Gulf and forms an integral part of BLME's strategy to expand across the region. This expansion will help to enhance our market intelligence as well as provide our existing and potential client base with valuable advice and investment opportunities within the GCC and the UK.” The Islamic finance market is currently estimated at $1 trillion and is expected to grow to a value of more than $2 trillion by the year 2015. Sharia’a finance is now increasingly perceived as a viable alternative to conventional banking, and is attracting a rising number of international investors.
www.leasingworld.co.uk ■ March 2011
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