Funding Options poaches Esme Loans’ commercial director
FUNDING Options has hired Esme Loans founding member Simon Cureton as its new commercial director.
The business finance marketplace announced Cureton’s appointment on Tuesday, which takes effect in May. Cureton will be based in Funding Options’ London office where he will be responsible for developing and implementing the firm’s overall commercial strategy, identifying new opportunities and promoting commercial innovation across the business.
He will also be tasked with building on existing partnerships and developing new ones. This will include a particular focus on deepening relationships with commercial and challenger banks. Funding Options already has partnerships with TSB and ING.
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Cureton was one of the founding members at Esme Loans, NatWest’s digital business lending platform, where he also held the role of commercial director for the past year.
Prior to starting Esme, Simon worked for RBS International as part of its transformation programme and he has worked at other City heavyweights including Morgan Stanley, Barclays Capital, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Deutsche Bank.
“We are delighted that Simon is going to be joining Funding Options to strengthen our growing senior team,” said Ryan Edwards-Pritchard, managing director of Funding Options.
“He has a wealth of experience in digital innovation and fintech, as well as an impressive track record managing and coaching teams. As we continue to grow and develop even more innovative product solutions for small businesses, we know his international expertise in managing digital platforms and designing new products will be invaluable to Funding Options.”
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Cureton said that Funding Options is “uniquely placed” to rapidly expand its service as the alternative finance sector continues to grow.
“I believe it can play an increasingly important role in helping businesses to access finance across Europe, and potentially further afield,” he added. “The combination of an already outstanding leadership team and the support from high calibre investors made this role an extremely compelling opportunity. I am very excited to join the team and accelerate the business’ development while helping the small walk tall.”
This is the latest hire bolstering Funding Options’ senior team, following the recent appointments of Alastair Preacher as chief product officer and Dean Spencer as sales director.
