United Trust Bank (UTB) has appointed Andy Porter (pictured) as senior director in its business development team to boost support for housebuilders and developers in the South of England.

Porter, who has a 25-year career in real estate finance, previously worked with lenders like RBS and Barclays and was most recently with Close Brothers.

Porter will focus on helping housebuilders and developers secure flexible funding for residential and mixed-use projects in both build-to-sell and build-to-rent (BTR) sectors.

His appointment follows Andy Thomson’s recent addition to the team as senior director of operational real estate, who is focused on loans for the build-to-rent sector and exploring other opportunities like purpose-built student accommodation.

Adam Bovingdon, head of property development at UTB, said: “Andy has joined us at an excellent time as we’re seeing high levels of enquiries from housebuilders and developers looking to take advantage of increasing activity in the market as well as the government’s commitment to get Britain building.

“2024 was a successful year for the Bank’s Property Development team.

“At the close we were helping our developer customers create around 4500 new homes across England and Wales and we are aiming to help housebuilders deliver even more in 2025.”

Porter said: “UTB has established an excellent reputation as an experienced and reliable relationship lender.

“I am excited to have joined the Bank at this busy time as it continues to support SME housebuilders and targets further lending growth this year and in the future.”