A senior member of the Birmingham business community has been appointed chairman of the Advantage Transition Bridge Fund.

Banker Norman Gascoigne takes on the task of steering the new £20 million fund as applications for support continue to grow from stricken companies.

Mr Gascoigne's appointment as chairman of the fund comes a week after former Barclays Bank executive Paul Wheeler was appointed as its chief executive.

The Advantage Transition Bridge Fund, jointly financed by Advantage West Midlands and the Department of Trade and Industry, was set up to help rescue companies hit by the MG Rover crisis. Loans from the fund will be available to suppliers or dealers facing financial difficulty as a result of the MG Rover situation and having a viable recovery plan, but insufficient finance from normal sources to implement it.

The loans are for up to three years, dependent on the requirements of the recovery plan.

Mr Gascoigne said: "We are already seeing the severity of the knock-on effect of the car-maker's demise through the supply chain and among Rover dealerships. The Advantage Transition Bridge Fund gives a lifeline to companies which are fundamentally viable but which have been so badly hit by this one-off event that they need extra support if they are to survive.

"The fund has a committee of experienced professionals from the banking and advisory community and we already meet regularly to assess applications for support and make decisions as quickly as possible."

Mr Gascoigne retired as the Royal Bank of Scotland's managing director corporate and commercial banking operations with responsibility for the Midlands and West Region in 2001.