Five Minute Focus On: Shane Donnelly, Ortus Secured Finance
Tell us about Ortus Secured Finance
We are a commercial lender specialising in bridging finance secured on property. We have been operating across the UK for seven years now and have established a strong customer base throughout the country.
Our head office is in London and we also have bases in the north west of England and Scotland. The Northern Ireland office here in Arthur House is up and running six weeks though we have been active in NI for some time now.
What is your role in Ortus Secured Finance?
My role in Ortus is to manage all aspects of the NI business, looking after our existing customer base and exploring every opportunity to expand it in a sustainable fashion.
I’m very fortunate to have an extremely supportive Board who also have a lot of confidence in the longer-term prospects for the NI market generally, factors which certainly make my job a little easier.
Tell us something about Ortus Secured Finance we may not know
We all love our sport in Ortus.
In addition to a group-wide fanatical support for Manchester United, the Ortus team individually have competed at a high level in an assortment of sports including rugby, badminton, cricket, water-polo, GAA, show jumping and netball.
The commitment and team work required to compete in any sport are attributes which I believe are very much transferrable to the professional environment. I spend a lot of my spare time coaching sport and in that role, I place a strong emphasis on culture and team work in order to compete with the best. That same emphasis within Ortus has seen us perform at a level well beyond the size of the team.
Maintaining and growing this culture combined with a champions league win for Man Utd are the targets for this year.
What’s next for Ortus Secured Finance?
Our long-term objective is to establish ourselves as the leading alternative funder in the NI market.
In order to achieve this, my immediate priorities for the business are to continue good quality growth of our loan book while also educating the local market on the Ortus offering. My key message for anyone thinking of borrowing, or representing someone who is making an investment decision, is to give us a call to chat through how we might assist.
What do you like about being a Glandore Member?
This is the first time I have used serviced offices and wasn’t quite sure what to expect but I must say, I’m delighted with it so far.
The location is perfect for me with 90% of my meetings conducted within a short walk from the front door.
The community activities in the building are also a big positive. I’m part of a small team here in Belfast however the constant flow of people through the building means I don’t go too far through the day without talking to someone. It’s also worth a special mention that one of my first transactions with Ortus was introduced to me on the stairs in Arthur House ….would love more of the same.
What’s your favourite thing about working in Belfast?
I have always liked the fact that Belfast is a village with a very well-connected business community. Given this, the positive experience our clients enjoy in their dealings with Ortus is probably one of the most important marketing strategies we employ and is something which we put a lot of effort into.
Friday nights in or Friday nights out?
Both!
As a dad of three sports-mad kids, my weekend will start with a call or emoji filled whatsapp message from my 11-year-old daughter with my instructions for the evening. My social life will then kick off either at the side of a football pitch or a swimming pool. If I’m lucky, the evening will occasionally finish off with a glass of wine with my wife in front of the TV. Anything more social takes more planning.