Alan Cleary, managing director or Precise, confirmed that the lender’s offering would be wider than just bridging deals, but would not be drawn further beyond saying it would offer short-term loans of between one and 18 months.

He said a launch date and products would be confirmed next week.

However, Cleary insisted that the lender was not moving out of buy to let and its range of products would remain in place.

Cleary said: “We will do more in near prime and short-term lending. The business is all about looking for margin in a part of the market that represents an acceptable risk. We believe short-term lending is the right market and it’s the right time to move into it.

“We have substantial funding and we are looking to go into the market and be a significant player.”

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Cleary said the lender had done extensive research into the market and believed it could be a credible provider of short-term deals for intermediaries.

Danny Churchill, of Commercial 1 Ltd, said: “Its entrance into short-term lending shows how rapidly the market has evolved over the last few years. This is good news for mortgage intermediaries and for our customers.”