Hoist Finance UK, which is being reborn as a ‘new’ business with a clear mandate to buy consumer debt, has further strengthened its senior management team with the appointment of Sam Joshi as Commercial Director.

Sam will support the business to grow as it refocuses its operations in the UK to concentrate solely on becoming the country’s premier acquirer of consumer debt portfolios from the banking- and wider lending community.

Sam is a familiar name in the credit industry having worked on both sides of the ‘buying’ and ‘selling’ fence in a career that spans more than 25 years. He started his career with Citigroup as a DCA and Asset Sales Manager and previously worked for Hoist Finance UK after it acquired The Lewis Group in 2014. Most recently he was Client Director at Lowell.

Ed Horton, UK Country Manager at Hoist Finance UK, said he is delighted to welcome Sam back to the team: “His experience, reputation and contacts will be invaluable as we re-affirm our position in buying and managing unsecured, NonPerforming consumer Loans (NPLs),” he explains. “He will also play an integral part in looking at secured Performing Loans and SME debt in the commercial space, partnering with the appropriate service providers and peers with the skills to handle more complex cases.”

Sam is similarly delighted to be back: “The UK is a mature market with plenty of sellers and volume and there is a real opportunity to become a leading player,” he says. “We are both looking to grow our existing partnerships and diversify further, working with others who may bring the additional skills needed to manage different asset classes, and who share our ambitions for the future.”

Sam envisages Hoist Finance in the UK will continue to target the Tier One and Tier Two banks and lenders, but also explore the secondary market, buying debt from other sellers who may wish to divest: “We are very open-minded about creating new partnerships and co-investing in portfolios that gives us the returns we are looking for,” he says.