Six new staff have joined Bristol-invoice finance firm Optimum Finance as it continues its rapid expansion.
The firm, set up last year by Richard Pepler, the former chief executive and co-founder of Bristol-based factoring group Ultimate Finance, now employs 18 people, having doubled its workforce over the past few months.
Optimum Finance offers a range of flexible funding produces including invoice discounting and factoring as well as a dedicated credit control team for clients preferring to outsource this element of their financial management. 
The six new staff members are:
Jonny Bryan, pictured right, who joined as finance manager in May following a five-year stint with Cheltenham-based Firestarter Business Solutions, most recently as commercial manager. Prior to that he has worked in a variety of roles across the public sector, corporate and SME environments.
Sherie Culley, pictured below left, who started her role as head of compliance and customer relations in May, most recently moving from Ultimate Finance where she was head of recruitment finance. Sherie has spent 19 years building a successful career in the invoice finance industry.
Saddaf Khokhar, who joins the team in her role as new business support executive, previously having worked for a major law firm as a paralegal.
Ana Marques, who became an executive assistant at Optimum last month, having previously spent time working in various accountancy roles across the UK.
Alan Redwood, pictured below right, who is based in Cheltenham and is Optimum’s new regional director for central England. Alan has 31 years’ experience in financial services managing corporate clients from SMEs to large multinationals in his senior roles in the finance sector.
Sieko Skrzypczak, who has been appointed as head of marketing, bringing 21 years of global insight and experience to the financial services team, offering a unique and dynamic approach to the business.
Optimum Finance CEO Richard Pepler said: “We’re extremely proud of the fast growth we’ve experienced in the past few months. It shows that SMEs and accountants – who often refer their clients to us – see how invoice finance can relieve cashflow pressures and enable commercial growth.
“We have a team at Optimum Finance that is exceptionally experienced – they understand the entrepreneurial mindset and how SMEs function and that enables us to deliver bespoke and creative finance solutions which meet the needs of individual companies. The atmosphere among the team is really positive, with exciting times on the horizon for the company.”
Optimum also said its annual turnover was eight times greater at the end of last month compared to the same time last year, although it did not give actual figures.
In May it launched its industry’s first app aimed at accountants to empower them to gain almost immediate funding approval for their small business clients.
