Afin Bank has appointed Kimberley Bennett to its mortgage underwriting team as the specialist lender continues to expand its credit operations.

Bennett (pictured) joins from Precise, where she spent more than nine years and progressed through the business to become a mortgage underwriter.

Her appointment follows a series of underwriting hires made by Afin last month, bringing additional experience across the bank’s residential, buy-to-let and bridging finance propositions.

The recruitment forms part of Afin’s efforts to develop its underwriting capacity as it expands its lending activities and customer base.

Bennett said the bank’s approach to assessing applications from borrowers whose circumstances may not meet mainstream lending criteria had been a significant attraction.

She said: “I liked the fact that Afin is supporting gaps in the market that other lenders are missing out.

“We will explore all sensible options to help a borrower and make the deal work, something that is missing from so many mainstream lenders these days.

“That approach makes it a much more interesting job for me as I really get to tap into my skills, experience and understanding of the borrower’s situation to assess the case properly.

“It’s good to be able to help people, who may have struggled elsewhere, to get a mortgage.”

Jason Oakley, chief executive of Afin Bank, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Kimberley to Afin and we now have a great team of experienced and skilled underwriters to support the bank now and in the future as we grow our propositions and customer base.”