Work with a funder that cares about your business.

Established in 2013, Praetura Asset Finance was the first truly independently owned asset finance company to enter the UK market place in 15 years. Formed specifically to concentrate on the needs of the SMEs our funding is here to help.

We have brought the personal touch back to asset finance and are proud to be a consultant lender working in partnership with British businesses, structuring funding solutions to meet the specific needs of each individual company.

Our People

Meet the sales team.

The time, knowledge and expertise of our team are all extra resources at your disposal.

Covering the whole of the UK, our sales team are asset finance funding experts, here to work in partnership with you to help your business flourish – led by our Commercial Director, Ric Simmons.

Ric Simmons

Commercial Director

Ric is one of the Praetura Asset Finance originals and has enjoyed over 20 years working in the hard asset finance and refinance sector.

A father of three with a questionable taste in football teams, Ric’s previous work experience has included working at Haydock Finance, Close Brothers Business Finance and One Business Finance. As Commercial Director, Ric is responsible for leading the Praetura Asset Finance team in Blackburn.

Fun fact: Ric used to represent the county of Lancashire at table tennis and is still working on the possibility of using one of the meeting rooms at the Blackburn offices to house a table tennis table.

“The people I work with at Praetura inspire me on a daily basis: always prepared to go the extra mile and intent on adding value to every transaction that we do. I’m proud of the principles on which this business was based and every day I see the benefits of that for the SME clients our funding is here to assist”

Dan Heald

National Sales Director

Dan Heald has been an integral part of our sales team from the very beginning of the Praetura Asset Finance story and boasts over 20 years experience in the business finance sector; having previously worked at Close Business Finance, Hitachi, Bank of Ireland, Parkinson Business Finance and GE Capital.

As well as leading ‘Team North’, Dan is responsible for building relationships with brokers and businesses in the Midlands.

Fun fact: one of Dan’s prized possessions is a signed picture of himself with Big Duncan Ferguson.

Lewis Banford

Regional Sales Director

Lewis, previously Area Sales Manager at Liberty Leasing, joined the Praetura Asset Finance team in May 2020 to head up our expanding Southern Sales Team.

With over 16 years experience in the asset finance industry Lewis is responsible for over-seeing the continuing expansion of the Praetura Asset Finance brand in the South of England.

Fun fact: somewhat of a motoring buff, one of Lewis’ most treasured possessions is a classic Volkswagen Golf Mk1 convertible called Jasper.

Paul Mountain

Regional Sales Director

Paul ‘Rocky’ Mountain joined the Praetura team in the summer of 2014. The ‘elder statesman’ of the sales team, Paul recently celebrated his 35th year working in the finance sector, having previously held positions at Metro Bank, SME Invoice Finance and Bibby Asset Finance (to name just a few).

Rocky looks after brokers and businesses across the North East of England.

Fun fact: Rocky is also a qualified football referee and can relate many a situation to something that once happened during a Preston North End football match.

Will Brazel

Regional Sales Director

Starting life at Praetura Asset Finance on our Graduate Business Development Programme (following studying Economics at University College, London), Will became a fully fledged member of our sales team at the beginning of 2018.

Will is responsible for building relationships with brokers and businesses across Lancashire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester and Merseyside.

Fun fact: as well as teaching the team the right way to eat a banana, Will is a self-taught street magician.

Dylan Fahy

Regional Sales Director

Dylan joined Praetura in the summer of 2019 as a member of our Graduate Business Development Programme, following studying for a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and a master’s in religion, culture and society at the University of Central Lancashire.

Dylan’s business development focus is based on working in partnership with asset finance brokers, business finance advisers and their SME clients across Scotland, Northern Ireland and North Wales.

Fun fact: Steve Coogan’s brother was Dylan’s history teacher in college.

Conal Myers

Business Development Manager

Conal is another alumni of the Praetura Asset Finance Graduate Business Development Programme and joined us back in the summer of 2018 following graduating from UCLAN with a first class degree in Sports Therapy.

Conal has been looking after developing business in the Eastern regions of the South of England for PAF since 2020.

Fun fact: Conal lived in America from the age of five to 13 and played youth team football for the US of A!

Guy Wadsworth

Regional Sales Director

Guy has been a part of the Praetura Group since 2019 and has taken on additional responsibilities within Praetura Asset Finance’s sales team over the past couple of years.

Well known throughout the industry, Guy’s asset finance career spans over 30 years, having worked in senior positions at the Davenham Group and Mistral Asset Finance, before joining the Praetura family.

Within the Praetura Asset Finance sales team, Guy is responsible for assisting brokers, advisers and their SME clients across South Yorkshire and the North East of England.

Lucy Oakenfull

Regional Sales Director

Lucy joined the Praetura Asset Finance sales team in May 2022, bringing with her over seven years’ experience working in the asset finance industry, having previously held business development positions at Dawson Group and Paragon Bank.

Lucy’s focus is on building relationships and working in partnership with brokers and their SME clients across London and the South East of England.

Fun fact: after travelling across America, one of the photos from that trip, of Lucy at the Grand Canyon, made it onto a travel company brochure and website!

Jansher Zahir

Business Development Manager - North West

Jansher joined Praetura Asset Finance on our Graduate Training Programme with the Credit & Risk Team as a Graduate Underwriter in the first quarter of 2021, graduating from the programme and being promoted to Underwriter in the Autumn of the same year.

In September 2022, Jansher chose to develop his career at PAF by moving across to the sales team and works alongside fellow alumni from the Graduate Programme Will Brazel, building relationships with brokers and their clients across the North West of England.

Rohina Ali

Graduate Business Development Manager

Rohina is the latest recruit to Praetura’s Business Development Graduate Training Programme and joined the Praetura Asset Finance team in November 2021.

Working alongside National Sales Director Dan Heald, Rohina is responsible for building relationships with brokers across the Midlands, to enable more SMEs to take advantage of the many benefits of the funding available and the assistance offered when working in partnership with PAF.

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Testimonials

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