Together has completed a £249m commercial real estate mortgage-backed securitisation, which “provides additional resource” to grow its operations.

The specialist lender says the deal, released to the stock market today, has an advance rate of 95%, with 79.75% of the issued notes rated AAA.

The portfolio, called CRE2, consists of first and second charge mortgages secured against small value commercial, residential and mixed-use properties located in England, Wales and Scotland. It adds that 40% of the underlying borrowers are self-employed.

The firm also says that 77.1% of the portfolio is made up of commercial properties, with 17.9% being mixed-use properties, while the remaining 5% are residential properties.

Together chief executive designate Gerald Grimes says: “We are delighted to announce the successful completion of our second small balance commercial real estate MBS, just three months after we issued the UK’s first transaction of this kind since the global financial crisis.

“The £249m CRE2 facility provides additional resource as we continue to extend our support to UK businesses.”

Together sells a mix of services that include, bridging loans, buy-to-let, secured loans and residential and commercial mortgages.

Together commercial chief executive Marc Goldberg says: “We think that the commercial property market is underserved and our latest securitisation presents a great opportunity for investors and for Together to grow our business.

“It follows our £200m small balance commercial real estate backed securitisation in March, and provides further support for businesses who will play a crucial role in the UK’s recovery from the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic.”

Together posted an underlying pre-tax profit of £44m in the three months to the end of March. It added that its average monthly originations jumped 68.5% to £125.4m in the period from the previous quarter, while its loan book stood at £3.9bn.