OakNorth

Last night, we continued our support for Tech Nation’s Upscale programme with an engaging fireside chat featuring our co-founder and Senior Managing Director, Joel Perlman. It was fantastic to reconnect with founders and leaders from some of the UK’s most exciting high-growth businesses, exploring the unique challenges and opportunities they face as they scale. As a bank built by entrepreneurs, we’re passionate about backing ambitious businesses and are proud to be part of programmes like Upscale that align perfectly with that mission. Thank you to everyone who joined us for an inspiring evening of shared insights, ideas, and opportunities! Chester Mojay-Sinclare (Enthuse) Johan du Plessis (tepeo) Jordan Buck and Nataša Williams (Cadro) Chris Green (Xapien) Henrik Hagemann (Puraffinity) Moty Jacob (SURF SECURITY) Nicholas Chadwick (Mission Zero Technologies) Daniel Saunders (Zeti) Elizabeth Gilligan (Material Evolution) Johnny M. (Tech Nation)  Joel Perlman, Peter King and Hugo Oliveira Sousa (OakNorth) 

Get ready for 2025 with our latest updates! Dive into insights from the Autumn Budget, explore flexible Net Asset Value (NAV) financing solutions, and join our upcoming webinar on optimising private equity fund operations. Plus, we’re spotlighting recent partnerships with STOREX Self Storage, Croud, and more inspiring businesses. Read the full newsletter now.

We were delighted to provide a £4.1m loan to our returning customer and the UK’s leading sustainable housebuilder, Verto Homes, to support the development of 10 new apartments overlooking the popular Fistral beach in Newquay, Cornwall. The transaction follows our initial £8.6m loan to Verto in November 2021, used to support the development of 30 Zero Carbon Smart Homes® in Falmouth and a further 18 Zero Carbon Smart Homes®, including eight affordable units, in Mylor. Hemesh Patel, Property Finance Director at OakNorth, commented: “As a digital bank that prides itself on supporting sustainable, innovative, and founder-led businesses, Verto is exactly the type of company we look to lend to and we’re incredibly proud to be backing them again. With energy efficiency becoming the primary reason why more budding homebuyers are looking to purchase new-build units, we fully expect this latest project in Newquay to be highly sought-after. Tom and Richard continue to lead the industry with their dedication and passion and have built a business with a unique and attractive proposition. We look forward to watching the development take shape, as well as supporting them on future projects across the region.” Read the full press release now: https://lnkd.in/eNjMA_ew

At this week's FTT Fintech Festival, we joined the conversation on digital transformation across numerous separate panels. Joel Perlman, our co-founder and Senior Managing Director, shared insights on the “Fit and ready for the future” panel, discussing his journey and the path forward for founders in fintech. Valentina Kristensen, Corporate Affairs Director, tackled “Data empowerment” and explored how data can expand lending access to underserved segments. Greg Manson, Director of Debt Finance, contributed to the “Financial services get personal” panel, focusing on how financial services can better cater to individual needs. Finally, Chantelle Lamb, Director of Financial Crime and Fraud, took the stage to address how fintech can protect consumers from online scams and fraud on the “Guardians of the wallet” panel. Thanks to FTT for a thought-provoking couple of days! #FTTFintechFestival

Following an initial loan in late 2023, we were pleased to extend further debt facilities to Storal, one of the largest privately-owned children’s nursery groups in England. Alongside equity from Graphite Capital, the lead sponsor, the investment will support Storal’s acquisition of Children 1st Day Nurseries, a well-respected nursery group with 23 nurseries across the Midlands and South Yorkshire. Stuart Blair, Debt Finance Director at OakNorth, commented: “Since its founding in 1988 by Margaret Mason, Children 1st has grown into a renowned nursery group and training centre. Margaret has been a true leader in the sector for over three decades with an outstanding dedication to raising the standards of early years education. Its values and approach are clearly aligned with that of Storal, and this transformative acquisition creates a top 10 nursery group which we are incredibly proud to be supporting. Sarah has built Storal into one of the UK’s highest-quality nursery operators, so we were delighted that Graphite, and the management team once again chose to work with us.” Read the full press release now: https://lnkd.in/eNb9vRx2

We were delighted to provide Dow Schofield Watts, the mid-market, challenger professional services licence network and owner of the Dow Schofield Watts brand, with capital to support its acquisition of DR Solicitors, the award winning, specialist law firm working exclusively with medical professionals including GPs and dentists. James Dow, Chief Executive of DSW Capital, commented: “This is a game-changing acquisition. Not only is it immediately and significantly earnings enhancing, but it also diversifies our revenues, building resilience, and provides an opportunity to expand into new professional markets. Working with DR’s inspirational management team, we believe we can accelerate the growth of the business using the strength of the Dow Schofield Watts brand, and resources and, over time, build a substantial platform of diversified, niche legal services. We are committed to supporting Daphne, Nils, and the DR team in the holistic growth and development of the business and welcome everyone warmly to Dow Schofield Watts. We’re grateful to the team at OakNorth for their ongoing support – they continue to demonstrate their entrepreneurial approach, transparency and flexibility.” Stewart Haworth, Debt Finance Director at OakNorth, continued: “DSW Capital is a profitable, fast growing, mid-market, challenger professional services licence network with a cash generative business model and scalable platform for growth. Its unique challenger model represents a differentiated proposition in a rapidly evolving market, winning it dozens of awards and industry-wide recognition. This is clearly aligned with DR Solicitors which has a commendable trophy cabinet of its own and an equally impressive reputation. We’re delighted to once again have been chosen as the trusted funding partner to DSW and look forward to continuing to support the business in its future growth ambitions.” Read more: https://lnkd.in/edd73gwF

Scaling at speed is no small feat, and for VC-backed companies, it’s crucial to have a banking partner that ‘gets’ the unique challenges of rapid growth. At OakNorth, we’ve crafted a business banking offering tailored specifically for high-growth companies, combining a fast-track setup, dedicated support, and exclusive resources to help them seize every opportunity. Read our latest article to see how we support businesses at each stage of their growth journey.

We were delighted to provide a £1.47m loan to fund the purchase of a 1,500 sq. ft. site at Parsonage Way Retail Park in Leigh, Greater Manchester, and in its place, develop a Starbucks drive-thru and two EV charging points. Dallas Rhodes, Director of Fairmilehead Ltd, commented on the transaction: “I have had the pleasure of working with OakNorth on some of my previous projects, so knew they were the right banking partner for this. The team know the market, are highly commercial in their approach, and have a genuine passion for supporting entrepreneurs like me. This is a project I’m very excited about – the drive-thru market has seen significant growth in recent years, solidifying its position as a vital and thriving segment within the broader retail industry. It will continue to draw in new entrants eager to expand their offerings, while also serving as a growth area for established businesses such as Starbucks which is already one of the most acquisitive brands in this space.” Fraser McPhail, Director of Debt Finance at OakNorth, continued: “Dallas Rhodes has strong relationships with drive-thru operators, having successfully completed similar developments for retailers such as Greggs and McDonalds in the past. He has over three decades of experience in the property industry, so is a pro at identifying high-potential sites, and forging the strong relationships needed with retailers to make them a success. There were over 100 new drive-thru openings across existing retail and shopping parks throughout the UK in 2023 – making this an exciting and attractive pocket for growth and funding within the broader retail industry.” Read the full press release: https://lnkd.in/eVgvwkyn

We were interested to read the recent report by the team at EY, which detailed the critical role that small and mid-tier banks like ours play in the UK economy.   Banks of this size contribute significantly in many ways, such as providing finance to SMEs (60% of all SME lending in the UK now comes from this group), which supports regional growth and wealth creation. In terms of savings, as a sector, we also provide most of the best-rate savings products to retail and business customers, with small and mid-tier banks consistently taking the top 2 slots on different customer service surveys. Read the full report now: https://lnkd.in/eQrXZtAF 

It's not too late to register for tomorrow's exclusive webinar on the trends and challenges of offices and retail spaces. Hosted by Greg Manson, Director of Debt Finance, this session will feature Elliott Stern, Founder of Compton, and Ben Holmes, Director at Ashfield Land Limited, discussing: 📊 London vs regional offices 🌍 Changing consumer confidence 📅 2025 investment outlook and transaction volumes Register now for the 12pm session: https://lnkd.in/esTHKATn