Shawbrook CFO quits as lender hit by £9m impairment charge

The lender said CFO Tom Wood’s resignation was not linked to the irregularities, which saw £14.7m worth of wheeled assets, such as trucks, trailers and hauliers, impacted. The incident occurred when a number of loans in one office were underwritten in a way that did not meet Shawbrook’s ‘strict’ lending criteria.

Wood, who is leaving to spend more time with his family, will step down from his role on 30 June to be replaced by Dylan Minto, director of strategy, on an interim basis. Minto joined Shawbrook in September 2013 and played a key role in the lender’s IPO preparations alongside Wood.

CEO Steve Pateman, said: “Shawbrook has come a long way in a short period and Tom has played an important part in the development of the bank, including helping it to achieve a successful IPO. He leaves with our appreciation and best wishes for the future.”

Shawbrook said it was confident that the incident within its asset finance division had been contained and legal proceedings are currently underway. It confirmed that pre-tax profit for the year will be hit by the £9m impairment charge but added performance is otherwise in line with expectations.

The lender agreed the event was ‘unfortunately timed’ but emphasised it was not linked to the outcome of the UK’s European Referendum vote.

Pateman added: “While this is extremely disappointing, the irregularities were identified by the upgraded risk management systems and controls we implemented earlier this year. They have been investigated thoroughly and appropriate action has been taken.”

Pateman explained that a recent upgrade to Shawbrook’s risk management framework would stand it in good stead to ensure a ‘disciplined approach’ to risk across the business.