Fiduciam is expanding its operations in Northern Ireland with the issuing of a Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) loan to a wedding and conference venue, Drenagh.

Drenagh is a popular Georgian mansion in County Londonderry, which was forced to cancel all events during lockdown. It took until mid-August to host the first socially distanced, post-lockdown wedding.

The CBILS loan allowed the borrower to lower their financing costs, not only because of the lower interest rate, but also because the UK government covers all interest during the first 12 months. Fiduciam granted the loan as it looked at the solid history the business had, as well as its longer-term prospects.

Fiduciam’s expansion in the Northern Irish market means it now has a loan pipeline approaching £20 million for CBILS loans from Northern Irish businesses. It is dedicated to Northern Ireland and plans to open a Belfast office just as soon as government health guidance permits it.

Kenneth Duffy, Fiduciam country manager for Ireland, said: “Throughout all the economic uncertainty, Fiduciam has remained fully committed to the Northern Irish market and our loan to the Drenagh wedding and conference centre is additional proof of that.

“Our investment in Northern Ireland continued throughout the Covid-19 crisis; we have expanded our team and we are opening a Belfast office as soon as the second Covid-19 wave is behind us. Our commitment has paid off thus far, our market share continued to increase this year as we helped more Irish businesses to achieve their dreams and objectives.”

Conolly McCausland, owner of Drenagh, added: “None of us could foresee Covid-19 and envisage how it would disrupt our business, so the CBILS loan from Fiduciam is a perfect solution for businesses like ours that have a solid business but have been hit hard by Covid-19. Fiduciam is developing a good reputation in Northern Ireland and its Irish team is very efficient and a pleasure to work with.”