Anderson was previously head of development lending at Amicus Finance and before that he worked for Fincorp.
Anderson said: “Bath & West values experience and judgement and understands that there are good deals to be done, particularly outside of London in the M4 corridor and down to the south coast.
“The bridging and development market has seen increasingly fierce competition and a surplus of private equity funding in the past year or so resulting in high-profile casualties.
“Getting the terms right, so that they work for both investors and developers is key, and knowing when to say ‘no’ is more important that saying ‘yes’ at any cost,” Anderson said.
Smith added: “Matt has long been involved with our business working closely with us during his time at Fincorp. His experience and hands-on approach to deals, before funding is approved and during development, is crucial to maintaining a robust loan book and something we value highly.
“His contacts across the short-term lending industry will be invaluable as we continue to grow,” he said.