60 seconds with...George Patellis

8 March 2010

What are the biggest problems the bridging sector has faced in the past year?
It’s similar to the rest of the lending industry in that getting funds has been difficult although our problems have not been so extreme. Because bridging is short-term, lending loans can be redeemed quickly. You could use a credit card analogy - the more you pay back, the more money you have to pay out. Our business levels are probably down from their peak but we’ve already had a couple of good months this year.

Have you tightened your criteria?
Yes, based on a requirement from our funders we have tightened our criteria. They didn’t take away our funding lines but they tightened up a couple of things. But we’ve still been able to lend.

Are you a member of the Association of Short-Term Lenders and if so, how supportive has it been?
Yes we are. This is all new to me - bridging is not my background. I’ll have my first meeting with ASTL in a few weeks but from what I know it’s a good forum where short-term lenders can share ideas and discuss what’s going on in the market. It’s pretty active.

What do you think of bridging finance?
It’s different. I’ve learnt a lot in the past few months. What I knew was limited to programmes at some of the lenders I worked with but I never had experience in originating the bridge, so I’m learning more every day.

You recently announced plans to expand into other areas - why is that?
It was always the plan - the guys who set up Tiuta are entrepreneurial. If they were looking to stay in pure bridging, I wouldn’t be the right person for the job. It was always the plan to get into longer-term lending too but we don’t want to turn Tiuta into a non-bridging lender. We are primarily a bridging firm.

What does 2010 have in store for bridging finance?
It will be a good year. There are some new entrants and there’s certainly a need for bridging.

Some lenders are coming back and the ability to refinance loans onto longer term products is there.

January was a little sluggish for us but we had a great February and I am cautiously optimistic about the rest of the year.

Interview by christine toner