Sancus Lending and Hawk Lending form new specialist lender

A debt advisory business called Westmead Debt Advisers will also be created. 

The new businesses will be equally owned by Sancus Group and Hawk Group, while Rory Mepham, CEO of Sancus and Robert Morton, chairman of Hawk Group will be appointed to the board of the new lender. 

Morton is the founder of Hawk Lending, an existing lender which offers debt and debt-equity solutions, advice, investment solutions and property development services. It is based in Jersey and is primarily funded by the Morton family. 

The new lender Hawk will provide development and bridge finance and is expected to have access to a wider range of potential co-funders and wholesale finance options. It will be funded by a £30m facility from the Morton family, existing co-funders, existing and new loan notes and other institutional sources of funding. This will include Sancus Group’s £125m facility with Pollen Street Capital. 

The current staff from Sancus Lending’s Jersey office and Hawk Group will be retained and employed by Hawk. 

Sancus Lending’s Jersey division and Hawk Group will continue to manage their respective existing loan assets, while new business will be managed through the joint venture.  

A strategic partnership

Rory Mepham, CEO at Sancus, said: “This joint venture with Hawk gives Sancus the opportunity to partner with a highly respected local family office. We are bringing together the best of our respective businesses and are confident that this will enable the diversification of our funding sources, and variety of products offered to clients to further grow our assets under management.  

“We are also very excited by the opportunities that developing a debt advisory business presents and look forward to growing that business in both Jersey and further afield.” 

Robert Morton, chairman of Hawk Group, added: “This strategic partnership signifies an important step towards realising our vision for a more dynamic and robust lending landscape in Jersey.  

“The joint venture strategically aligns the collective strengths of Sancus and Hawk to capitalise on existing market opportunities and allows for the identification and maximisation of untapped potential, positioning Jersey at the forefront of debt solutions.”