Shawbrook Group has today (20th March) singed an agreement to acquire Bluestone Mortgages Limited (BML).
Subject to satisfaction of the conditions precedent to the acquisition, completion is expected to take place in Q2 2023.
Marcelino Castrillo, Shawbrook Group's chief executive officer, said the firm was delighted to have strengthened its long-standing partnership with Bluestone Mortgages through this acquisition.
“Bluestone Mortgages is a well-established brand in the UK specialist residential mortgage market, and by bringing the two organisations together, we can use our combined capabilities and scale to offer an even stronger proposition to UK homeowners,” he added.
“Driven by increasing numbers of people choosing to work for themselves or in sectors where incomes are complex, we anticipate significant long-term growth in the specialist mortgage market.
“With both Bluestone Mortgages and The Mortgage Lender brands combined with Shawbrook's strong and stable balance sheet, the group is very well placed to consistently meet this growing demand."
Steve Seal, Bluestone Mortgages' chief executive officer, commented: "This transaction is great news for Bluestone Mortgages, our intermediary partners and our customers.
“Shawbrook has been a long standing strategic partner for many years and joining it is a natural step as we continue to grow and develop the business.
“We have exciting growth plans and the support available from Shawbrook will help to accelerate these, enabling BML to provide innovative lending solutions to the growing number of customers who will need the support of a specialist mortgage lender."
Commenting on the announcement, Lewis Shaw, owner of Riverside Mortgages, said: “First, Barclays bought Kensington, and now Shawbrook is buying Bluestone — it looks as though consolidation in the specialist space may be the shape of things to come, reducing trading costs and increasing profitability in the face of what appears to be significant economic headwinds.
“Hopefully, it means those borrowers who have more complex circumstances can continue to be served, as it's likely that demographic is about to grow by quite a margin.”
Justin Moy, MD at EHF Mortgages, added: “Shawbrook has been the main funding partner for Bluestone for a number of years, so this is a very good acquisition for both sides.
“Specialist mortgage lending is a very profitable business area that will be a growth opportunity for many years to come.
“Increasing demand for flexible underwriting to help support business owners, complex incomes and credit-impaired borrowers will be welcomed by the market.”
