New SME bank opens Manchester hub and appoints team

SME-focused bank Recognise today announced the opening of its Manchester hub and the appointment of James Meigh as regional director and Ian Fields as business development Manager for Yorkshire and the North West.

In addition, Angela Norman has been appointed as head of broker development for the bank. The team will be based in Blackfriars House, Parsonage, Manchester.

James will be responsible for Recognise in the North of England, providing a range of property and secured lending solutions for SME clients and intermediaries.

He began his career with Barclays where he spent 10 years in various roles and completed his ACIB professional qualifications.

Over three decades his banking experience also includes establishing Santander’s Yorkshire & Humberside real estate finance team, which he led for more than 11 years, and running the Leeds office for Nationwide Commercial Property Finance.

Ian Fields has supported SME’s in achieving their ambitions through meaningful relationships for 25 years.

Starting his career at Allied Irish Bank in Manchester, he moved on to lead the local property team for Yorkshire Bank in Liverpool.

Ian also spent four years at Aldermore where he assisted in the development of the direct channel for the bank in Manchester and led its real estate and owner-occupied business lending teams for the North West.

In his role at Recognise, Ian will be working closely with prospective customers to deliver tailored financial solutions as well as engaging with intermediaries and the wider professional community to build a regional franchise.

Angela Norman has more than 29 years’ experience within UK banking and fintech, having spent most of her career at Lloyds and RBS.

Previous roles include head of customer, product and propositions at Revverbank, a start-up challenger bank, where she was responsible for the origination strategy.

At RBS she held positions including chief of staff to the CEO (RBS England & Wales) and director of commercial banking. Angela has deep experience of the SME market and is passionate about supporting businesses to achieve their ambitions.

James Meigh said: “I am very excited to join Recognise, a completely new venture but with a highly-experienced team and a very credible business plan for the regions.

“I am looking forward to working closely with the business and professional community to build long term relationships and deliver a better all-round experience for customers.”

Bryce Glover, deputy CEO of Recognise, said: “I am delighted to welcome James, Ian and Angela to the team, they bring an incredible amount of experience to our new venture.

“Having spent a great deal of my career in the North West, I am excited that we are putting down our roots where there is a strong heritage of business entrepreneurship and economic resilience.

“This is a great opportunity for Recognise to showcase its service proposition and its commitment to relationship banking.”

Recognise’s founding ethos – and the reason for the bank’s name – is to focus on the SME community that has been so overlooked and neglected by mainstream banking.

The bank will offer a relationship-led proposition which will be delivered through dedicated relationship managers based in London, Midlands, Manchester, and Leeds.