Black & White Bridging has appointed Robert Owen to its board as a non-executive director.

Owen joins from United Trust Bank where he worked for seven years.

He was recruited at United Trust Bank to create a new specialist property lending division for the bank becoming managing director for the mortgage and bridging divisions.

Prior to that, he has served as chief executive at Matlock Bank, where he founded London Mortgage Company, and as chairman at Al Rayan Bank, the first Sharia retail bank outside of the Gulf.

Black & White commercial director Damien Druce says Owen’s appointment “gives us access to the expertise of one of the most experienced individuals in the industry”.

“For many years, he has been at the heart of the revolution in specialist lending in the UK and we are fortunate to have him join us. His intimate understanding of the industry and its funding along with his experience of working with many of the big players in the City will be of tremendous value to Black & White, particularly at this stage in our development,” Druce adds.

Looking forward to the new challenge, Owen comments: “I’ve known Black & White’s CEO, Martyn Smith and Damien Druce for a number of years and have always been impressed by their extensive knowledge of the property development and complex bridging markets, coupled with a clear focus on customer service to the Intermediary.”