Leading North East England property lending fund TOC Property Backed Lending Trust PLC (PBLT) has announced the completion of a £3.8 million transaction, providing essential funding for a new development in Scotland.
Managed by Newcastle upon Tyne-based wealth management and property lending specialists Tier One Capital Ltd (Tier One), PBLT is providing a three-year debt facility to develop a new, ultra-modern and environmentally advanced crematorium complex in central Scotland.
Located on the outskirts of Glasgow, the development is being delivered by an experienced management team at Horizon Cremation, the trading name of Horizon Ceremonies Ltd. It is the third in a series of developments for the company, which will create 25 new jobs in the construction and operation of the facility.
Horizon Ceremonies is also backed by leading private equity fund manager Maven Capital Partners LLP (Maven), which has previously provided significant equity and working capital funding for the business.
Listed on the London Stock Exchange in early 2017, PBLT has a current loan book of more than £27m across its portfolio of property projects, with a lending pipeline of £14m, which will go towards new investment opportunities, many of which are planned for the North East of England.
PBLT Fund Manager Brendan O’Grady said “We are delighted to have closed this deal before the year end. This is another example of our successful strategy of targeting investment opportunities presented by strong, credible and experienced management teams.
“The support of Maven has added further strength to this investment proposition, and we are pleased to be providing interesting, deliverable and robust opportunities for our shareholders.”
“While it is clear that traditional lenders are withdrawing from certain parts of the market, we are very much open for business and are pleased to be able to announce a fourth transaction in as many months.”
Jeremy Hamilton, founder and director of Horizon Ceremonies, together with Stephen Byfield, commented: “We are absolutely delighted to have completed this transaction, especially given the current working restrictions we are all facing as a result of the pandemic.
“We are equally pleased to be working alongside the team at Tier One, which has demonstrated a highly capable, flexible and pragmatic approach in delivering the funding for this development.”
Colin Grier, Chairman of Horizon Ceremonies Group added “We are excited to close-out the funding on our third of five planned developments and we look forward to developing this opportunity on the outskirts of Glasgow together with Tier One and PBLT.
“The Tier One team recognised very quickly that we are working to produce significantly better, essential and modern crematorium facilities in areas of proven need, and that we are aligned with Tier One in the pursuit of the highest standards of construction, operations and project management and we are looking forward to other future development opportunities where we can work together.”
