Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking provides comprehensive expert financial services to mid-market businesses in Birmingham and the wider Midlands region.

Founded in Birmingham, Lloyds Bank has a deep West Midlands heritage and will be 250 years old in 2015.

We have a team of dedicated banking and corporate finance professionals based on Colmore Row in the heart of Birmingham who work closely with our clients to enable them to make the most of growth opportunities as and when they emerge.

It is this approach that drives our success and this appetite to provide tailored funding solutions that is reflected in our net lending to Midlands businesses.

Our West Midlands mid-markets team alone has increased lending by 13 per cent during 2013 to date, against a national picture that has seen overall bank lending to businesses reduce by 4 per cent.

We also actively encourage businesses to take advantage of reduced borrowing costs, particularly through the £80billion Government-backed Funding for Lending Scheme.

This initiative is enabling us to access and lend money at discounted rates, further demonstrating our continued support for businesses and for the UK economy as a whole.

Ultimately, we want management teams at the helm of strong performing businesses, who are actively pursuing growth objectives, to know that the finance they require to achieve their ambitions is accessible.

We have supported some of the region’s biggest funding deals over the past 12 months, working with a breadth of businesses to provide substantial finance packages to help drive growth and expansion, including:

- A finance package to support iconic hotel, golf and leisure resort The Belfry, with its £25million refurbishment project

- A $25million (£17million) funding package for international manufacturer and supplier of door and window components Tyman, to support its acquisition of Truth Hardware, a North American window and door hardware manufacturer

- A £5million funding package to support the continued expansion of automotive manufacturer Sertec, taking the business’ total funding facility with Lloyds Bank to more than £19million

- A £4million finance package for national and international delivery firm Aspray24, to help fund the development of its state-of-the-art new logistics warehouse

Our experience of working with such businesses has revealed high levels of resilience and tenacity, despite the challenging market conditions that have prevailed in the last few years. These businesses are led by strong management teams who are driven to ensure that they maintain a firm focus on retaining customers, winning new business and controlling costs.

As the West Midlands economy returns to growth, we understand the critical role we have to play.

We have a strong appetite to support the growth aspirations of West Midlands companies, founded on building a deep understanding of our clients’ businesses, and are actively looking to provide tailored funding solutions to meet their needs.

• Andrew Connors, Area Director for Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking in the West Midlands

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