Finance Yorkshire positive on prospects
FINANCE Yorkshire acting chief executive Alex McWhirter has signalled his intention to take up the role full-time when he has completed his commitments at Yorkshire Forward.
Speaking to TheBusinessDesk.com, Mr McWhirter was also upbeat about the quality and quantity of business looking to Finance Yorkshire for support, expressing confidence that it will have more than enough good prospects to invest its £90m fund.
Currently assistant director of business at Yorkshire Forward, which is due to close by spring 2012, Mr McWhirter took up the role of acting chief executive of Finance Yorkshire at the start of November on a three-day-a-week secondment.
He said: “We are in a run down situation so the organisation is looking to me to tie things up. Then it would be my intention, of course ultimately it is up to the board, that I would take this job up substantively.”
Finance Yorkshire was officially launched in March but only made its first investment in August after facing obstacles including the election of a new Government but Mr McWhirter said he was “really pleased” with its work so far.
Its seedcorn finance and business loan divisions have made several investments and its equity investment arm is close to announcing its first deal.
Finance Yorkshire has launched as businesses continue to complain about the approach being taken by traditional lenders while banks insist they are continuing to support viable propositions.
Mr McWhirter said: “Banks will deny they have changed their lending policies. They have had to change because of the pressures that are on them. If we can get companies that have spoken to intermediaries, got good plans and spoken to intermediaries we can work with them.
“I think we have got a good opportunity with the £90m fund we can invest that in good secure opportunities and I don’t mean safe opportunities I mean where there are companies that are going to grow.”
He added: “I think demand is strong enough in that I don’t think we are going to have an issue investing the capital we have. I don’t think we are going to be chucking money out the door at things in other circumstances we wouldn’t do otherwise.
“We have got good companies here that want to grow, that need capital to grow. Why wouldn’t we have enough companies?”
The acting chief executive said Finance Yorkshire was treating applications on a case-by-case basis but expressed hope that the organisation that it could invest in regional strengths including the manufacturing, creative, digital and food sectors.
