PARAGON Bank has bought up Premier Asset Finance through its Paragon Bank Asset Finance division for £20.5m.
Edinburgh-based Premier is a leading UK asset finance brokerage with a book of more than £100 million lending a year to a range of SME customers – an area where Paragon sees growth, expanding across a range of asset classes including wheeled assets, plant and machinery and IT.
Premier Asset Finance has a national presence, and won a Broker of the Year award in 2015. The move comes less than a year after Paragon acquired vehicle finance specialist Five Arrows Leasing Group which was rebranded Paragon Bank.
The base purchase price for Premier is £8.5 million, payable in cash. A further £12 million is payable over the following five years, subject to performance. The deal, being paid from Paragon Group’s existing cash resources, has been given regulatory approval.
Paragon Bank managing director Richard Doe said:
“I’m delighted to welcome the Premier team to Paragon Bank’s asset finance division. Premier is one of the UK’s leading SME asset finance brokerages and, working together, we have a unique opportunity to expand our asset finance business by forging new and exciting relationships with SME customers.”
