West One applies to be regulated for mortgages

18 April 2011 | By Natalie Thomas

West One Loans has applied to the Financial Services Authority to be regulated for mortgage lending.

The bridging lender is authorised by the FSA to run a collective investment scheme which is used to fund its non-regulated bridging loans.

But Mark Abrahams, co-founder of West One Loans, says it feels restricted with-out its authorisation for mortgage lending.

He says: “Although we estimate the regulated market is less than 20% of the overall bridging market, it is an important source of finance for those requiring short-term funds and who do not wish to commit to long-term mainstream finance or go through a lengthy process.”

Abrahams says that with more bridging lenders entering the market it would be preferable to be able to compete in its entirety rather than limiting the business to the crowded non-regulated space.

Peter Turner, commercial director at All Types of Mortgages, says it is advantageous for a bridging lender to be regulated for mortgage lending.

He says: “We receive a lot of our business from mortgage brokers which means we have a 50/50 split in terms of regulated and unregulated business.

“It makes things easier if the lender is regulated by the FSA because you don’t have to keep switching lenders for different types of business.”

In January Masthaven Bridging Finance announced it had become FSA regulated.

The lender said gaining authori-sation was a lengthy process as it applied in 2009.

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