British Business Investments has announced a £15m commitment to property finance lender, Roma Finance.

The investment is intended to help increase access to finance for smaller scale housing developers.

British Business Investments, a wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank, seeks to increase the supply and diversity of finance for smaller businesses by boosting the lending capacity of finance providers across the UK.

Since it was established in 2014, it has committed more than £3.0bn to providers of finance to UK smaller businesses.

British Business Investments CEO, Judith Hartley, commented: “This £15m commitment to Roma Finance supports our objectives as Roma Finance provides much needed support to the smaller housebuilding sector which has been subject to restricted access to funding in recent years.

“Supporting independent regionally based operators, such as Roma Finance, helps to diversify the finance market and provide more choice for companies across the UK, so they can access the finance they need to grow and prosper.”

The commitment will enable Roma Finance to support smaller housebuilders with funding to help with the construction of new residential homes.

Roma Finance is active in commercial to residential conversions and small to medium-sized new-build housing developments, with projects ranging from £75,000 to £3m. The lender is also committed to providing energy-efficient homes, having recently funded the first commercially available carbon-neutral properties in South Lanarkshire, Scotland.

“We’re thrilled to announce this new funding arrangement which will help us support yet more good quality smaller schemes around the country,” said Roma Finance managing director, Scott Marshall.

“British Business Investments’ goal is to make finance accessible to smaller businesses. Our visions and ideals are very much aligned, and we have close relationships with many builders and property investors.

“We’re committed to funding projects that benefit our communities and we offer fast decisions, access to our significant property expertise and a dedicated point of contact throughout the whole process, from application through to completion of the build and resale. We are very excited about this new partnership, and this will help our customers.”

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