Bath & West Finance has rebranded to Black & White Bridging.

It has been launched to create a new nationwide lender dedicated to intermediaries and their customers across the country, led by new commercial director, Damien Druce.

Druce (pictured) was director of intermediaries for P2P lender Assetz Capital, having had senior sales roles at LendInvest and Castle Trust. Over the past two years, he has acted as a consultant to a number of lender clients.

Druce will be responsible for driving Black & White’s growth plans, working alongside founder Martyn Smith.

Druce said: “I am delighted to be joining Black & White Bridging, the new identity of Bath & West Finance. Martyn and I intend to take the best of an already respected short term lending brand and build on those foundations to create a national presence and bring our particular style of bridging to a wider audience.

“While there are many new lenders in the sector, not one of them brings the level of proven service standards and intimate knowledge and experience of the sector that Black & White does.”

Smith added: “Black & White Bridging is committed to the intermediary sector and while advisers have access to an astonishing range of lenders, old and new, the simple truth is that few of them are able to match the expectations of the broker market on a consistent basis. Black & White intends to change that perception by offering introducers a service that delivers on every level with no grey areas and will ultimately set the bar for excellence for the future.

“I am delighted to welcome Damien formally to Black & White Bridging, working alongside me to raise the profile of the new brand and develop our proposition to brokers. With his passion for short term lending, allied to our collective experience in this space, Damien will occupy a central and pivotal position in the new business. In taking our brand to market, he brings a deep appreciation of what brokers want from a lender, which will be central to our approach. His experience will be invaluable in shaping our offering both now and in the future.”