CEO on how the lender continues to challenge the status quo through its products and support
Founded nearly a decade ago and granted a banking licence in late 2018, Chetwood Bank is led by CEO Paul Noble (pictured) in its continued proposition as a challenger brand, but does he still think it can be considered as such?
“I think that's a great question,” Noble told Mortgage Introducer. “I think we are a challenger and we continue to challenge the status quo of the world in which we're operating, with the products and the support we're providing. To give you a tangible example, we launched ModaMortgages in January of this year and that is in an established marketplace alongside competitors who have been there a long time, supporting brokers who have been doing this for many years.
“We built that proposition from the ground up to actually look at how that could be created, and to recognise today's needs rather than where we've been historically. How could we create an organisation and a brand proposition which lived up to the values we're talking about, which are simpler, faster and smarter. We actually considered, when building that business, what was required to do that for the broker and actually help the end borrower and customer as a result of that - and that's what we've built.”
ModaMortgages is an introducer-originated business, focused around a specialist product range, that is predominantly a buy-to-let offering. “The relationship we have across those networks is absolutely vital to us,” Noble said. “The feedback we're getting very loud and clear from the broker community today is that we're hitting that on the head. We've actually developed something which works for them. We've backed up the technology with a great set of people who are passionate subject matter experts in what they're doing, whether that's from our relationship managers through to our underwriters, through to our completion agents. They are absolutely customer-focused and broker-focused and making sure we get the best alignment between technology and humans to make things operate simpler, faster and smarter.
“So, I think that's where the challenger piece keeps kicking in. It's not about sitting back and replicating what we do today when we are entering new markets - we're diversifying our product proposition. Every time we do that, we're taking feedback from brokers, from customers, from borrowers to understand what it is they want, what they need, how we operate differently to benefit them, and then we look at how we put that together.”
READ MORE: From poker to broker: The specialist finance adviser playing a new hand
Working as a team
Noble has been leading Chetwood Bank since last September, his latest position in a career spanning almost 30 years. It began with a post-graduate role at Lloyds TSB in the mid-nineties, and has since seen him take executive roles at lenders such as Tandem Bank, JN Bank UK, and Allium Lending Group. “I think the one big learning in my career, every step,” he said, “is that we do nothing alone. We do everything together. It's not me delivering everything you're seeing at Chetwood, it's a team of over 300 people who are spending every day making it a better place to work and delivering great outcomes for our customers. Overcoming challenges is about that teamwork, about the collaboration, it's about the communication, it's keeping focused.”
Just days ago, Chetwood Bank announced that its balance sheet had exceeded £5bn for the first time – a new milestone in its growth. “The growth of the balance sheet is a clear reflection of that journey we've been on and also demonstrates that we are committed to the marketplace in which we're providing those products and services today,” Noble said. “We are now at that sustainable, profitable position, which is reassuring for all stakeholders, and I think as we continue to grow that balance sheet further, it's clear evidence that we are recognised now as an established, trusted partner in the mortgage space. It's really important for us that it's about disciplined execution, making sure we've got the right operations, the right focus around the marketplace on customer demand and the expertise needed - that's what's underpinning what we're doing.”
The business, which was rebranded as Chetwood Bank in October last year, replacing its previous incarnation, Chetwood Financial Limited, is eyeing further expansion. “We've got plans to continue growth through delivering more of what we're doing today, but also to continue to diversify our product offering and launching,” Noble shared, “with new, innovative products and solutions which are going to help brokers and customers alike. The smarter use of digital technology doesn't mean being impersonal - it supports a frictionless process, it helps the engagement and it means we can actually overlay it that with human experts, who really add value back to the brokers.”
