Director Appointments & Retirement

RNS Number : 2722W

Orchard Funding Group PLC

10 December 2019

 

10^th December 2019

Orchard Funding Group Plc

("Orchard" or the "Company")

Board Changes

Orchard the finance company which specialises in insurance premium finance and the professions funding market announces that its Chairman, Gary Jennison has notified the Board that he will not be seeking re-election at the Annual General Meeting and so will retire from the Board, effective 12^th December 2019.

Orchard also announces that Mark Sismey-Durrant will be appointed Chairman and Steven Hicks will be appointed as Non-Executive Director and Chairman of Risk Committee. The appointment of Mark Sismey-Durrant and Steven Hicks will take effect from the conclusion of the AGM.

Ravi Takhar, CEO stated: "We are delighted to appoint Mark Sismey-Durrant and Steven Hicks to our Board. Mark has many years of banking experience, with the most recent being a Board Director and Chief Executive Officer of Hampshire Trust Bank plc. Steven also has many years of banking experience and is currently Chair of Risk Committee at State Bank of India (UK) Limited.  Both Mark and Steven will be key to our future banking aspirations. We would also like to thank Gary Jennison for his many years of support and dedication to our business. We wish him the very best for the future."

Regulatory disclosures - Mark Sismey-Durrant

In accordance with Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules, Mark Timothy John Sismey-Durrant, previously Mark Timothy John Durrant, (aged 60), holds or has held the following directorships and partnerships:

Current Directorships	Past Directorships
Advanced Payment Solutions Ltd	Hampshire Trust Bank plc
Brookburn Ltd	Hampshire Trust Nominees Limited
Bedford School Foundation	Nationwide Compensation Service Limited
	Litigation Funding Limited
	Hampshire Bank Limited
	UK Finance Ltd
	Loughborough University Development Trust
	MSD Financial Consulting Limited

Mark Sismey-Durrant was appointed as a director of Heritable Bank plc on 6 September 2002 and resigned on 28 February 2011. Heritable Bank plc's immediate 100% owned parent bank was Landsbanki Islands hf, a company incorporated in Iceland and quoted on the Icelandic Stock Exchange ("Landsbanki"). Landsbanki provided a committed line of credit equal to £400m to Heritable Bank plc. On 7 October 2008, Landsbanki was put into receivership and was therefore unable to fulfil its remaining undrawn funding obligations of £320m to Heritable Bank plc. As a consequence, Heritable Bank plc entered into administration on 7 October 2008. As at 11 September 2019, unsecured creditors of Heritable Bank plc have been paid dividends equal to 98 pence in 100 pence. Mark Sismey-Durrant was also a director of the following wholly-owned subsidiaries of Heritable Bank plc:

·     Heritable Capital Partners Limited, from 6 September 2002 to 28 February 2011;

·     Heritable Asset Finance Limited, from 1 June 2004 to 28 February 2011;

·     Key Business Finance Corporation plc, from 1 May 2005 to 28 February 2011; and

·     Key Business Finance Limited, from 1 June 2005 to 28 February 2011.

As a consequence of the administration of Heritable Bank plc, all of the subsidiary companies set out above entered into administration on 15 October 2008. Heritable Bank plc was the only creditor of the subsidiary companies.

Mark Sismey-Durrant was also a director of Landsbanki Guernsey Limited, a subsidiary of Landsbanki, from 1 June 2006 to 7 October 2008. Landsbanki Guernsey Limited was placed into administration on 7 October 2008.

Mark Sismey-Durrant does not hold any shares in the Company.

Regulatory disclosures - Steven Hicks

In accordance with Schedule 2(g) of the AIM Rules, Steven Mark Hicks (aged 56), holds or has held the following directorships and partnerships:

Current Directorships	Past Directorships
State Bank of India (UK) Limited	Just Ask Genie Limited
Gentoo Genie Limited
Gentoo Genie Admin Limited
SMH Interim Management Limited

Steven Hicks does not hold any shares in the Company.

There are no other disclosures require under paragraph (g) of Schedule 2 of the AIM Rules.

**ENDS**

For further information, please contact:

Orchard Funding Group PLC                                                    [phone]

Ravi Takhar, Chief Executive Officer

Liberum (Nomad and Broker)                                                 [phone]

Neil Patel

Richard Bootle

Laura Hamilton 

 

END

 

 

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