Redwood Bank fuels future growth after award-winning North Herts based business takes major step forward

By Layth Yousif 8th Oct 2023

Redwood Bank takes 'major step forward' with proposed RTO

A specialist business bank is fuelling its future growth with a strategic move to raise capital with a proposed reverse takeover.

Redwood Bank's parent company, Redwood Financial Partners Ltd (RFPL) has signed Heads of Terms for the reverse takeover of R8 Capital Investments plc (R8), a company listed on the London Stock Exchange. R8 will acquire the entire issued share capital of RFPL by a share-for-share exchange, giving the shareholders in RFPL a majority holding in R8.

R8 intends to carry out contemporaneous new issue of capital which will be contributed to the Bank as common equity tier 1 regulatory capital.

This transaction will facilitate a significant change of pace for the award-winning bank as it aims to increase scale using future capital raises to increase lending capacity, as well as examining the opportunities for diversification into providing finance in adjacent asset classes.

Gary Wilkinson, Co-Founder and CEO at Redwood Bank, said: "It is an exciting day in the Bank's history.

"Completing this transaction would be a major step forward for us, providing an excellent opportunity for Redwood to raise more capital, grow and diversify.

"I am incredibly proud of what the Bank has achieved in the six years since launch and I am confident about the next stage of our journey.

"We have an enviable network of intermediary partners, a driven team, and robust infrastructure to maximise future opportunities."

The announcement comes off the back of a record-breaking six months for the Hertfordshire-based Bank. It has grown its lending book by 7.4% and total assets by 5.3% over the 12 months to 30 June 2023.

Unaudited figures show a record profit before tax of £2.8m for the six months to 30 June 2023, more than double than for the same period last year, and an increase in net interest margin from 3.30% in June 2022 to 5.13% at the end of June 2023.

This performance was underpinned by the successful launch of the Bank's new fixed rate loan products, which have been designed to provide financial stability for professional landlords looking to expand. The Bank is well positioned to take advantage of future growth opportunities.

John Stobart, Legal Counsel at Redwood Bank, said: "While this represents a key opportunity for the Bank, it remains subject to, amongst other things, definitive terms being agreed and the completion of legal and financial due diligence and regulatory approvals."

Please see link below for Redwood Bank's half-yearly report.