The Manchester Evening News (UK) announced that Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance will be headed John Bevan, who has 19 years’ experience within the invoice finance industry. Bevan has held positions at Royal Bank of Scotland and was head of trade and working capital UK and Ireland at Barclays.

Bevan said: “We are delighted to announce the launch of Secure Trust Bank Commercial Finance. Backed by one of the UK’s leading challenger banks, the business provides SMEs with a unique offering, providing all the benefits of fast, independent, local decision-making along with the backing of a major financial institution.

“We launch in an environment of huge opportunity – traditional debt finance remains difficult to obtain for many businesses, and may not be the right fit. Companies are more aware of alternative forms of finance than they were several years ago, and have to some extent accepted the fact that the UK’s historic reliance on traditional funding cannot continue. We look forward to workingwith SMEs to help them understand the benefits of Asset Based Lending in financing the growth of their business, and providing an outstanding service.”

Founded in 1954, Secure Trust Bank is based in Solihull. It has been a subsidiary of the Arbuthnot Banking Group since 1985.