Alternative funding provider Reward Finance has appointed Mike Calvert to its North West team as business development director.

Calvert (pictured) has worked in the finance sector for 30 years. He began his career in asset finance before moving into corporate and commercial banking with HBOS and Lloyds and then into invoice finance.

He joins from Bibby Financial Services where he was head of sales for the North West, helping to make the Liverpool office the most profitable and successful within the Bibby group.

Calvert said: “This is a really exciting time to be joining Reward Finance. It is experiencing dramatic growth due to the fact that no one offers the same product range, flexibility and speed of decision-making in the market.

“In addition the company continues to be keen to lend, especially following the recent investment of an additional £40m from Foresight Group. This presents a great opportunity for me to use my network to build on Reward’s success by raising the awareness and capability of the company across the North West.”

Nick Smith, group sales and marketing director of Reward Finance, added: “We have known Mike for a number of years and we know he will be a real asset for Reward Finance. He is one of the best connected finance professionals in the North West which helped him build the best performing office in his previous employers group.

“We are building a powerful and well respected team in the region and Mike’s appointment provides further proof of our ambitious plans.”