"Right now, one of the biggest challenges for brokers is keeping their clients calm and on top of things."
FR: What was behind the recent rebrand to Provide Finance from Pitch 4 Finance?
The business has evolved significantly since we first launched back in 2020. The primary driver was developing a platform which allowed brokers to connect swiftly with the many different lenders active in the specialist space, to help them find the best rates and lenders for their clients, no matter how exotic or out of the ordinary the case might be.
But over time, we’ve become far more than that, adding a personal touch to the service we provide, which complements that cutting edge technology. That leading technology can only take you so far - it was very clear from our conversations with the brokers we work with that what really set us apart was the way that we married that technology with a personalised support system, helping them find the finance their clients need as quickly as possible.
We realised that Pitch 4 Finance was no longer a great fit for the way that we work. Pitching is difficult, hard work, yet what we had set out to do was to make things easier and simpler for brokers. By contrast, we believe that we are providing brokers - and by extension their clients - with the sort of technology and care, alongside access to the best rates and lenders, that stand out from other distributors.
FR: How important is it for brokers to have access to actual people to talk to when sourcing specialist products?
It’s huge! Sourcing is a vitally important part of any broker’s job, and technology can play a brilliant role in helping them do that. We set out to build the best platform in the market, allowing brokers to research the different deals available to their clients, submit enquiries and make applications. Having a technological solution like that is enormously valuable at all times, but it becomes even more valuable at a time when rates and criteria are changing frequently, as we have seen in recent weeks.
But the mortgage market is based on people, on relationships, and having the opportunity to actually discuss the various aspects of a case. I am a big believer in being able to provide that personal touch and support, which is why we have a team of experts in the various areas of the specialist market on hand to help brokers with their queries, large or small. Technology and human expertise are most effective when they are combined, and people are best equipped to pivot and adapt quickly to when they have the support of technology to provide up-to-date information in an instant. We are a user-centric team and we’ve made a user-centric place.
Technology also enables us to give brokers greater choice. If a broker doesn’t want to call us on the phone to discuss those queries, they can make use of the online chat facility and speak to our advisers that way.
FR: Are there additional challenges to sourcing specialist products, compared with regular mortgage deals?
It’s certainly true that every specialist case is unique. There will always be particular details about a borrower or the project they are looking to go ahead with which mean that things can be a little more complicated.
That’s something that Provide Finance has addressed with our platform, however. The borrowing requirements are matched with appropriate lenders, and those lenders are then invited to propose terms for the loan. It takes out some of the uncertainty that you can find with specialist deals, while brokers are able to speak directly with lenders through the platform, allowing them to quickly agree terms to proceed with the loan.
With Provide, brokers have access to 225 lenders, so we are confident that the likelihood of finding the right fit is greater than anywhere else. It would be impossible for brokers to carry out thorough research across such a broad selection of lenders without technology and we developed our platform with the specific purpose of delivering the best client outcomes, whilst making life easier for brokers.
FR: What do you think brokers want from a specialist sourcing system?
Right now, one of the biggest challenges for brokers is keeping their clients calm and on top of things. The speed with which rates and criteria change can make the job of advising a client extremely difficult, and I believe that the Provide Finance platform can help them do that.
Reliability is crucial, too. When it comes to specialist cases, the devil really is in the detail. Brokers need to have faith that you can help them access the finance their client needs. We have learned an awful lot over the last couple of years about how to make those complex cases more straightforward, which is why we’ve been able to deliver funding solutions worth more than £300m for a wide range of different borrowers. That track record has allowed us to win the trust of brokers. More than 1,000 brokers now use the platform and it is being adopted as the technology of choice by an increasing number of networks and packagers.
And brokers want to feel listened to, as well. We have evolved our platform based on our dialogue with brokers, as we have built an even greater understanding of precisely what they need from a funding platform. That understanding has helped us refine the way that we work, so that we can deliver precisely what brokers need from us. Such is the power of the platform that brokers aren’t only using Provide to find the best deal for their clients, they’re also using it to find the best deals for themselves.
FR: What does the future hold for the specialist market?
It’s been a tumultuous time for all areas of the property market - the specialist sector certainly isn’t immune.
But demand remains really healthy from property investors for products like bridging finance, development finance and commercial mortgages, because the fundamentals of the market ultimately haven’t changed. Bricks and mortar can be a terrific investment asset, and there are plenty of investors who want to put their money into property - it’s up to firms like Provide Finance to ensure that the process of accessing the financing needed for their projects is as smooth as possible.
We’ve spent the last couple of years getting our proposition right, and now it’s time to embark on the next chapter under a fresh new brand.
