Hilco Expands Team Further With Appointment of Senior Lending Specialist

Specialist real estate lender Hilco Real Estate Finance (HREF) has appointed London-based development and bridge lending specialist Simon Pollins to join its rapidly growing UK team.

A qualified chartered accountant for over 35 years, Simon joins HREF as senior business development consultant, bringing over 30 years’ experience in residential property lending to the expanding HREF team. For the last 10 years, he has set up and run specialist bridging and development lenders, and has also worked with the family offices of ultra-high net worth individuals throughout his career as well as having been involved in many complex pan-European transactions.

Simon commented: “I have watched HREF’s early progress and numerous transactions since its launch last year, and I am excited to be joining a new lender at such an early stage of its journey. In a fast-changing lending market, HREF’s offering in the sub-£100m lending space is in high demand, and its approach to streamlining access to funding resonates in the property sector at a time when many mainstream lenders are unable to compete.”

Andrew Ward, managing director at HREF, comments: “Simon has deep experience helping new and growing lenders gain traction in the market, especially focusing on agile lenders which offer fast, flexible secured lending on property assets. He’s a great addition to our growing team that has already been recognised with industry newcomer nominations, and he will be instrumental in helping us to meet and exceed our ambitious 2025 lending targets.”

The lender launched in 2023 to provide bespoke, flexible property finance solutions nationwide across various real estate sectors and capital structures, offering short-term loans for growth, acquisition opportunities, development exits and refinancing exits with loan sizes ranging from £3m to £100m+.

Recent lending deals include: a £10m bridge loan against two care homes; a £13m exit loan secured against 24 London apartments; a £23m facility secured against a major roadside infrastructure site; and an £8.3m facility secured against a Surrey mansion home.

Headquartered in London, HREF comprises a team of highly experienced finance professionals based across the UK. It is a fully integrated subsidiary of Hilco Global (Hilco), the multi-national financial services group with almost $5bn of assets under management. HREF builds on Hilco’s long established credentials as a lender, valuer and asset manager.