• Real estate development lending platform Hilltop Credit Partners today announces a funding partnership with MCAP Global Finance (UK) LLP, the UK subsidiary of New York based Marathon Asset Management, LP (“Marathon”) a leading global credit manager with $23bn in assets under management.
• The partnership between Hilltop and Marathon will focus on whole loan originations of c. £25-100 million in the UK residential market, which continues to suffer from a structural shortage of modernized, affordably priced housing stock.
• Funds advised by Hilltop and Marathon, along with OakNorth Bank, have provided a £33m whole-loan facility to Sherriff’s Gate Development Limited. The facility will be used to finance the development of 213 newbuild apartments in Worcester City Centre. The scheme is scheduled to be delivered in Q2 2024, with construction undertaken by the Elliot Group.

London, 20 April, 2022: Funds advised by Hilltop Credit Partners, a specialist funding partner for SME residential developers, and MCAP Global Finance (UK) LLP, the UK subsidiary of New York based Marathon Asset Management, LP (“Marathon”) a leading global credit manager with $23bn in assets under management, along with OakNorth Bank, have provided a £33m loan facility Sherriff’s Gate Development Limited. The facility will be used to develop 213 affordably priced newbuild apartments in Phase I of the Sherriff’s Gate Development in Worcester City Centre.

The planned Sheriff’s Gate development is a multi-phase, mixed-use scheme that will ultimately consist of 469 apartments, 40,000 sq. ft. of commercial and retail space, a 200-room hotel, several restaurants, 10-pin bowling lanes, a cinema, a gym, and nearly 1,000 new parking spaces.

The development is part of the Worcester City Masterplan, which calls for the delivery of over 3,000 new homes; 9 new parks, squares and public spaces; 8,600 new jobs; 14km of new cycle infrastructure; and the restoration of 8 historic buildings.

The development team will be led by Stennard Harrison, Jr., CEO of Sherriff’s Gate Limited, who has 30 years of construction and development experience in the Worcester market.

Paul Oberschneider, CEO of Hilltop Credit Partners, commented:
“Over the past two years, Hilltop has been an active player in the UK development lending market, supporting SME residential developers and providing funding for new homes across the UK. Our partnership with Marathon, one of the world’s leading institutional credit managers, will allow us to fund larger developments with whole loans of up to c. £100m.”

Jon Braidley, Senior Managing Director at MCAP Global Finance (UK) LLP commented:
“We are delighted to partner with Hilltop Credit Partners to fund the Sherriff’s Gate development, as early movers in the regeneration of Worcester City Centre. Leveraging MCAP and Marathon’s extensive multi-decade track record in real estate and global credit markets, we look forward to identifying additional funding opportunities in the attractive UK residential development lending market together with Hilltop.”

Mohith Sondhi, Senior Director of Debt Finance at OakNorth Bank, commented:
“We are pleased to be continuing our long-standing relationship with Hilltop Credit Partners to provide senior financing for Sherriff’s Gate, which will provide affordably priced housing in the historic West Midlands city of Worcester, delivered by an experienced local developer. We look forward to working on additional transactions with the Hilltop team.”

Stennard Harrison Jr., CEO of Sherriff’s Gate Limited, commented:
“We are excited to be breaking ground on a development site we have been assembling for over 30 years. With a footprint of over 7 acres, the Sherriff’s Gate development will have a transformative effect on Worcester’s City Centre. Given the strong local housing demand, and the lack of affordable housing supply that has been delivered over the past decade, we believe there will be strong uptake for Phase I units from both owner-occupiers and buy-to-let landlords. It has been a pleasure to work with the Hilltop team whose deep understanding of development finance allowed us to successfully complete this complex transaction.”

Ends

Notes to the editors

About Hilltop Credit Partners
Hilltop Credit Partners is a London-based specialist end-to-end funding partner for small and mid-sized residential property developers across the UK.

With a proven track record in property development, asset management and financial structuring, Hilltop is funding the future of housing, with a one-stop funding solution covering the entire development lifecycle.

Follow us at Hilltop Credit Partners here: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hilltopcreditpartners/
Read our market insights here: https://www.hilltopcreditpartners.com/insight/
For more information, please visit Hilltop Credit Partners at www.hilltopcreditpartners.com

About Marathon Asset Management
Marathon Asset Management LP is a global credit manager with $23 billion in assets under management. The firm was formed in 1998 by Chairman & CEO Bruce Richards and CIO Louis Hanover. With offices in New York City, London, and Tokyo the firm has more than 160 employees worldwide. Marathon deploys capital in the public and private credit markets, corporate loans and bonds, emerging market debt and structured credit markets, including real estate and asset-based lending. For additional information, please visit www.marathonfund.com.

For more information, please visit Marathon Asset Management at www.marathonfund.com

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Hayley Cronin
[email protected]
+44 (0) 203 903 6369