21 Sep Specialist Property Lender Appointments at Octopus Property

Octopus Property, an established specialist property lender, has announced that they have appointed three new BDMs. These business development managers will cover the west of England, the home counties, and the Midlands.

Samantha Graydon has joined the team from Castle Trust where she was instrumental in developing their loan book. Michelle Walsh has contributed substantially to the brand development and public awareness of Together. Chris Timm has also jumped the fence from Together, bringing valuable experience from broking and direct lending departments.

Combined Expertise

Graydon’s new role will involve developing relationships with commercial, residential, and development brokers. Chris Timms brings 10 years of financial services experience under the belt. Similarly, Walsh, formerly from Barclays, where she worked in operational and sales roles, will serve Octopus Property well in developing new market-leading products and improving the quality of their broker offering.

It is evident that Octopus Property are experiencing substantial growth as they have made 25 new appointments since the beginning of 2018. Their loan book growth consequently clearly illustrates this as it currently stands at over £800 million.

Asked to comment, Dmitri Zarpzala, their head of sales, had this to say, “recruiting and retaining the industry’s brightest talent is vital for Octopus, and we’re pleased to welcome these three new BDMs to the business”.

Specialist Property Lender Relationships

Zarpzala indicated that their regional knowledge and expertise will support local services to brokers. Additionally, this will help to build relationships important to the business that are long-term, personal, and trusted.

Additionally, Octopus Property prides themselves in not having quotas or geographic limits that prevent lending in specific areas. This aligns them with the growing demands experienced from borrowers outside of London.

The three new additions to their team all bring with them a comprehensive understanding of local markets. All things considered, this will support expansion and strengthen the intermediary network as they target £1bn of lending over the next 12 months.

This news comes in the wake of the announcement that Octopus has provided four regional commercial property loans. These total £35 million across Birmingham, Derby, Edinburgh, and Manchester.