Brightstar Financial has launched its invoice and asset finance offering, following a seven month pilot. 

The firm said the move was made in response to growing demand from intermediaries.

The Finance and Leasing Association’s latest figures showed that asset finance grew by 9% in May this year, compared with the same month last year, and asset-based finance loans increased by £25 billion in 2015.

Brightstar says its new finance arm offers intermediaries a “full suite” of services for clients looking at alternative ways to finance their business needs.

The firm’s invoice and asset finance team, which also covers unsecured lending, has seen significant growth since the business arm was first piloted in December 2015, after the appointment of Paul Debney who heads up the division. Having previously worked in the SME and corporate banking sector, as well as at HSBC and Clydesdale Bank, Debney has more than 30 years’ experience in the banking and finance industry.

Debby said: “Raising finance carefully is more vital than ever post-Brexit, and it is clear that more individuals and businesses are understanding how their assets can be used to unlock capital.

“Invoice and asset finance are growing areas of lending and, as a result, it is no surprise that borrowing against assets has become a more mainstream option for those looking to unlock funding and fuel growth.

“While working with lenders who offer a flexible approach to underwriting, Brightstar’s new invoice and asset finance arm allows the team to be even more specialist in an array of areas of commercial finance, offering intermediaries a full suite of solutions to achieve their goals. We also work with a range of specialist lenders which allows us to go out to the whole of the market in order to meet a customer’s individual requirements.”