Motorsport fan David Henderson had a dream to transform some abandoned clay pits into a state-of-the-art racing track. But David, Managing Director at Manna Developments, discovered trying to secure funding to realise his ambitious project hit the skids at every turn.
That was until The Route – Finance approved a £875,000 loan for the purchase of the 200-acre site near Coalisland, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.
Now progress is being made on realising the dream for David, and he has nothing but praise for The Route – Finance and the way in which they helped the project take shape.
“Our experience of the banking world was that following the downturn, it is risk averse, lacking in imagination and inclined to delay decisions unless backed up with a report from a big four accountancy practice.
"Even then our contact with other businesses suggests that having progressed through the bureaucratic mire, the security also being requested reflects unrealistically high levels of coverage, which in itself is a constraint.
"Comparatively, the approach of The Route – Finance was refreshing. The members of our team have been through governmental and banking appraisal processes from both sides of the fence, but found The Route to be commercial and capable of seeing the big picture.
"That is not to say that The Route – Finance’s due diligence process was not thorough, but having established the strong credentials of our project, the time spent afterwards
was crossing Ts and dotting Is."
Using pre-mandated member funds, The Route – Finance offers SMEs prompt initial decisions on secured loan proposals with a certainty of outcome. The Route – Finance is part of The Route – City wealth club, a wealth management company based in the City of London.
Members of The Route – City wealth club pay a membership fee to gain access to a suite of services, which includes the option to participate in investment opportunities sourced by The Route – Finance.