Gen H has moved to become a broker-only lender “as it works to forge deeper partnerships across the industry,” and will also cut rates by up to 25 basis points.
The specialist lender says it will restructure its business and teams to focus their efforts on delivering a strong end-to-end service alongside its conveyancing unit Gen H Legal.
The firm, which launched in 2020 and targets residential first-time buyers, says it has hired Karen Appleton as head of lending and Claire Pratt as head of financial crime risk, to help smooth this change.
It adds that it has also secured an unspecified amount of additional capital from a combination of new and existing equity investors, including Legal & General.
The fintech business will continue its forward-flow funding arrangement with strategic partner Nottingham Building Society, which began in 2022.
Gen H chief executive Will Rice says:“ Making homeownership accessible to all has never been a solo endeavour for us — we rely on the talent and commitment of our intermediary panel to help us help aspiring homeowners.
“The team and I are looking forward to a year focused on strengthening our relationships with our broker partners, delivering innovative new products to market, and working together to build the fairer housing market that we all deserve.”
The lender will also cut rates by up to 25bps tomorrow (12 March) from 5.30pm.
Its reductions come as Halifax, Santander, the Co-operative Bank and NatWest all lifted rates today.
Highlights of its changes, in a note to brokers, include:
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Five-year rates up to and including 80% loan to value fall by 25bps
Five-year rates above 80% LTV fall by up to 19bps
Two-year rates up to and including 80% LTV fall by 16bps
Two-year rates above 80% LTV fall by 10bps
Gen H raised cash in a Series B round of funding led by Legal & General, in November 2022.
As part of that deal, Legal & General acquired an 18.75% stake in the young firm, taking a seat on the board alongside Peter Thiel’s Mithril Capital and Brent Hoberman’s Firstminute Capital.
