Pepper Money has appointed Claire Blunt as an additional business development manager for the North of England. The appointment is designed to strengthen the lender’s second charge sales team. Blunt brings over 21 years of experience in banking and mortgages to the role, having previously worked as a second charge mortgage adviser. As a BDM, for the North of England, she will work alongside Luke Edwards with Pepper Money’s broker partners in the region to ensure their customers benefit from the lender’s way of financing their goals.

Shawbrook has launched a new "top-paying" three and five-year fixed rate ISA. The announcement comes as the specialist bank also increased its rate for its two- and five-year fixed ISA. The three-year fixed ISA starts with a rate of 4.40%, with the five-year product starting at 4.17%. For those who are looking to lock in for the two-year fixed product, the rate will start from 4.61%. The lender also offers a seven-year fixed rate ISA, which begins with a savings rate of 3.56%.

LiveMore has promoted and appointed three new head of department across its finance, compliance and marketing divisions. Eduard Akopian has joined the mortgage lender as head of finance, with eight years’ experience in financial services. As part of the role, he will oversee the firm’s corporate model, advise the management team on spending, protect LiveMore’s financial assets and oversee day-to-day operations. Carly Chandler has been promoted to head of compliance, having worked at LiveMore for three years. She previously served as compliance manager, and as part of the new role, will build on the firm’s governance foundations. Finally, Sarah Wade, who has consulted with LiveMore since November 2023, will now take on the role of head of marketing (intermediaries), where she will be responsible for developing relationships with intermediaries to support the firm’s main route to market.

---