Second charge mortgage lender, Optimum Credit, has hired Matthew Batte as its business development manager (BDM) for the south.
Batte worked at Shawbrook Bank for around three years previously, most recently as a senior relationship manager.
Prior to that he worked at First Trust Finance for nearly three years as a sales manager, working at Optimum Credit before that as a broker account manager for under a year and First Trust Finance as a senior underwriter for nearly eight years.
In his role he will work with southern brokers to help them meet clients’ capital raising needs. The company offers variable, fixed and discounted second charge mortgages worth from £5,000 to £1m.
Simon Mules, Optimum Credit’s commercial director, said: “I’d like to welcome Matthew back to Optimum Credit. He has a great pedigree in second charge lending and will be a huge asset to our business and brokers.
“We continue to lead the way in this market, and we have ambitious growth plans for the business as part of the Pepper Money group.”
Pepper Money bought the second charge lender in 2018.
Anna is currently the deputy editor for Mortgage Solutions and editor for Specialist Lending Solutions. She has worked as a journalist since 2019, having secured her Gold Standard NCTJ diploma from News Associates in a fast-track six-month course.
She started her career as a report at specialist publication The Insurance Insider covering a wide range of areas before joining Mortgage Solutions and Specialist Lending Solutions in 2021.
In her role, she helps put together and structure the news agenda for the day and writes up press releases, reports, interviews, analyses and exclusives across both titles. She also commissions blogs for Specialist Lending Solutions and hosts online masterclasses and in-person events across the business.
She has been shortlisted for three journalism awards, which include BIBA Journalist and Media Awards Scoop of Year Award in 2020, Headline Money Mortgage Journalist of the Year Award (B2B) in 2022 and 2023.
Prior to being a journalist, Anna worked in ecommerce across Snow + Rock, Cycle Surgery and Runners Need websites, and before that worked at specialist financial PR firm Rostrum.
In her spare time, Anna enjoys reading, seeing live music, and cooking for friends and family. When she gets a chance, she also enjoys hiking, skiing and indoor rock climbing.
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