The specialist bank completed the loan in one week and will allow the construction and development company to acquire a site comprising nine flats, two takeaway restaurants, a vacant office unit, a casino, a newsagent and an optician. 

Equitable – part of the Morphuse Group – has planning permission to convert the vacant office space into 18 studio apartments, while the nine two- and three-bed flats located on the upper floors will be refurbished. 

OakNorth was introduced to the deal by Brotherton Real Estate and Ben Barbanel, head of debt finance, and Surinder Sidhu, debt finance director, at OakNorth, felt this was an example of how different the bank is to traditional lenders.

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“The borrower needed the capital within a week and we were able to complete the entire transaction – from first meeting to disbursement of cash – within this time frame. 

“It’s great to be closing another deal with Brotherton Real Estate and we look forward to seeing how the development of Equitable House progresses.”

Equitable was founded by Oded Bar and Elad Farkash in 2006 and has worked on a number of multi-million-pound projects, including the recent completion of 32 student units in Kilburn.

The pair were delighted to have secured the loan from OakNorth and felt the development was in an area which was becoming increasingly desirable for Londoners. 

“With its central location and proximity to shops, restaurants, the cinema and the train station, we have no doubt that Equitable House will prove popular among buyers in the area.

“The fact that we managed to secure the finance we need in just one week is pretty incredible and we really appreciate the time OakNorth put in to ensure this happened.”