Shire Leasing PLC has announced a major milestone in its strategic growth plan, with gross receivables surpassing £200 million.

Commenting on the accomplishment, Mark Picken, CEO of Shire Leasing, said, “For a privately-owned company to reach £200m gross receivables, and at such pace, is a testament to Shire Leasing’s position as an innovative, forward-thinking funder within the asset finance market.”

In addition to naturally increasing originations since reaching £150m gross receivables in October 2021, there has been an array of elements attributing to Shire’s growth, resulting in 70% of agreements now written to own book.

British Business Bank partnership

Shire Leasing’s ongoing partnership with the British Business Bank, dating back to 2014, has continued to play a key role in the company’s more current performance.

Since 2021, accreditation to all three iterations of the Recovery Loan Scheme has allowed Shire Leasing to offer improved terms through their own book lending, as well as write an increased volume of business loans for existing customers directly to their portfolio, crucial during a period where access to working capital has been vital.

Innovation and technological advancements

Innovation remains a core focus for Shire Leasing, resulting in the appointment of a dedicated Director of Transformation.

Shire’s long-term 'Aurora' campaign which focuses on driving imagination, automation and scaling of the business has resulted in various developments, including a Directors Guarantee Automation module which has made auto-decisioning possible for sole traders, partnerships and new-starts. Such projects have increased auto-acceptance rates in supplier-driven sales, and halved average manual underwriting decision times to under two hours.

Investments and optimised cash flow

Another development module includes ‘Intelligent Block Funding’, which has made agreement allocations to block funders faster and more accurate, supporting and optimising Shire’s own cash flow management.

In 2022, a £15m medium term note (MTN) programme was secured with LGB Capital Markets. The investment was distributed towards working capital, investing in new technology, and generally creating further flexibility for assignment to Shire’s own book portfolio.

Environmental initiatives

Outside of the business’s own internal systems and infrastructure, Shire has continued to develop environmental improvement solutions, such as ‘Low-Start for Low Emissions’, to encourage and support investment in green assets.

Shire Leasing’s Driving Clean Air programme, which supports the delivery of financial assistance for businesses affected by Clean Air Zones, has also continued to expand and is proving to be another example of a successfully innovative income stream introduced to support the company’s environmental goals, now appointed by five local authorities across the UK.

Mark Picken (pictured) commented, “Despite economic challenges over the past years, Shire’s nature to adapt to market dynamics keeps us aligned to evolving customer expectations so we can deliver a first-class service. We’re extremely proud to achieve this £200m, and we will continue to build and foster long-term relationships, think outside of the ‘normal’ parameters of finance and devise bespoke solutions to support the markets that we serve.

“We are driving admirable ideas and results, supporting not only our strategic growth plans, but more importantly empowering businesses to thrive and achieve their goals through our accessible and flexible funding solutions.”