Brokerage exec on supporting industry newcomers – and growing a business
He’s still only in his early 40s himself, but Rahul Modasia (pictured), director of commercial, bridging and development finance at brokerage Rainstone Money, considers himself among an older generation of financial services professionals, with a key role to play in guiding an influx of newcomers to the industry.
“The new generation is coming in,” Modasia told Mortgage Introducer. “There are a lot of the younger generation who want to get into the world of bridging, and we have quite a few junior BDMs in our firm. It’s a different world we are operating in now, so it’s about supporting them. I started in the world of banking when I was around 21, so I have been in it for about 20 years-plus. Banking has changed so much - it's completely changed from the days when I was working for a bank, and everything was done face to face. You would go to see clients, have a meeting and you would do business on the shake of a hand. Now, it's totally different.”
Following the pandemic, Modasia identifies a shift in the way that the financial services industry operates, particularly within the mainstream lending space, towards remote, digital interactions. He switched from a high street lender after nearly 14 years’ service to join Rainstone Money, a business that has been built up by ex-professional bankers within the commercial and property industry - and which still believes in conducting in-person meetings.
“The difference between us as a brokering firm and other firms is that we have never forgotten the involvement of face-to face contact,” Modasia said. “We're very driven on relationship building and we like to meet clients face to face, rather than doing business over the phone. It gives us a competitive edge. The first three or four weeks at Rainstone were very daunting. It was very different to when I was working for a bank at a corporate level, where there was much more structure, and I was thinking have I made the right decision? My mission for the first 12 months within Rainstone, as a business development manager, was to make it stand out, to build the brand, to let people know who we were, what we did, where we'd come from, and what we stood for. We had one office when I joined and we've got four offices now, three in London and one in Luton, and we’ve developed very good relationships with lenders. A lot of people know who we are, and I'm proud of where we've got to from where we were.”
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Building a business post-COVID
Modasia acknowledges that the few years after COVID were difficult, with rapidly rising interest rates, at a point where the brokerage needed to build its business. “Many people stopped borrowing money,” he recalled, “but we had some very, very good existing clients who came back to us with repeat business, and people needed to restructure portfolios, so that kept us going.” Reflecting on the business now, he added: “The most enjoyable thing is when we can get something approved for a client, and we go back after six to seven months, and they have developed 20 flats in a big building, we've contributed towards that. If that client hadn't come to us and we hadn't given the funding for it, then that building might not be there.”
As Rainstone Money goes from strength to strength, what has Modasia learned during his career so far? “The biggest thing I've learned is that you should always maintain your relationships, and never burn bridges,” he shared. “I would say always keep those relationships really tight, and keep very good connections - a brilliant network is key. Brokering is not a nine-to-five role, and when the clients are free, you have to be able to cater for them, with very flexible hours. You need to put in the time and effort to get results.”
