ScotPac appoints respected advisory expert Chris Leeds to leadership team

Australasia’s largest specialist SME lender ScotPac has appointed Chris Leeds as General Manager of the business in Victoria and Tasmania.

Chris, a Chartered Accountant, has advisory, restructuring, turnaround and lending experience in the Australian and UK markets, including a decade with restructuring firm Ferrier Hodgson and three years at GE Capital in the equipment finance division.

He is a former state manager and head of banking for GraysOnline and most recently was APAC head of advisory and finance at leading global advisory business Hilco Global.

“I’m looking forward to leading the business at such a crucial time, especially in Victoria as the state’s economy opens up,” he said.

“It’s a great time for Victoria and Tasmania’s SME sector to take advantage of growth opportunities – there’s never been a better time to maximise the funds available in an SME business and ScotPac’s solutions can have a powerful impact on maximising cashflow.”

Tightening broker and accountant connections to SME lending

Chris said a large part of his new role will be solidifying already close connections with the broker and accountant networks in both states.

“Accountants and brokers who want to be trusted advisors to their business clients really need to look beyond traditional funding to the more flexible funding sources that ScotPac can offer,” he said.

“We see ourselves as enabling the growth that many businesses might feel is being restricted under their current finance arrangements.

“With new products being introduced, and our recently announced $100m ScotPac SME Bounce Back Fund that offers the first three months interest-free, ScotPac is now able to help a much broader pool of business owners than ever before.

“This breadth of solutions and our ability to be flexible and say ‘yes’ quickly is essential as businesses across each state look to bounce back.”