Clohessy’s “initial priorities” will be to continue to develop the bridging credit strategy and identify “potential process improvements” that can enhance its service proposition and deliver quick outcomes for brokers and customers.
She was most recently the senior proposition manager at Shawbrook for around two years, and before that, she was the director of underwriting at LendInvest.
Before that, she worked at Shawbrook Bank for around six years in various senior roles and previously held roles at AIB, Orange and Bank of Ireland.
Sundeep Patel, director of bridging at UTB, said: “Gene brings a huge amount of experience and know-how, with a proven track record of managing high-performing teams and delivering an excellent service to brokers.
“As UTB looks to increase its appetite for more complex and challenging bridging cases in response to broker and customer demand, her experience and success of supporting commercial growth in combination with a degree of underwriting prudence will be invaluable as we continue to develop UTB’s bridging proposition in an evolving marketplace.”
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Patel has structured the team to manage regulated and unregulated bridging applications separately, which means that “dedicated and suitably skilled teams” deal with core business and complex proposals differently.
The firm said it has seen a “significant rise” in refurbishment loan and rebridging enquiries and a growing appetite for complex cases where direct telephone contact with specialist underwriters would be “beneficial”.
Clohessy added: “l am looking forward to working with UTB’s excellent bridging team and encouraging closer links between underwriting and brokers. Whilst many lenders prefer to keep their credit teams well away from brokers, UTB recognises the benefit close relationships can bring and that united we go further, especially when cases are less straightforward and need a more tailored approach from an experienced underwriter who is empowered to find a way to say yes.
“UTB has an excellent reputation for reliability, loyalty and delivering what they promise. My aim is to build on that by enabling the team to give brokers more positive decisions quickly so they can provide an excellent service to their customers and UTB can increase its share of the bridging market.”
