FRUSTRATED banker Ian Moore had the perfect solution when he became demoralised at the height of the recession — he struck out on his own to help businesses borrow the money they needed.

Now, Mr Moore, who runs the Independent Business Finance Company with his wife, Kelly, from his Harwood home, is celebrating five years helping other firms access the cash they need to expand.

The 40-year-old former Turton High School pupil worked for two high street banks until he decided to launch his business.

He said: “It was the credit crunch which made me decide to get out of mainstream banking.

“Banks just didn’t want to lend. I was turning round to Bolton businesses that were fantastic and hungry, but they couldn’t get anything from the banks because they were too scared.

“It was surreal. If a business needed money, the banks wouldn’t lend.

"But if they didn’t need finance, the same banks were falling over themselves to finance them.

"The decision to lend was coming from so high up the chain of command it was silly.

“Banks didn’t want to lend to pubs, clubs and shops.

“I just got fed up with saying 'no' — it was soul destroying. There are only so many times you could round and look at these people were desperate to do well.”

Mr Moore said he knew the necessary finance was available and decided to launch his business to help local companies access funds.

The father-of-three said: “I knew there was money out there. I had been seeing people with money problems which I knew were solvable and I decided to do something about it.

“It’s still very difficult to find the right finance for business. The secret is finding out enough about the client on day one and knowing where to look for the money.

“There are many different ways of borrowing money. There are many independent firms now willing to lend — a kind of second tier of banking, but it’s got to be fit for purpose.

"The business has got to demonstrate it wants to borrow money for the right reasons.”

Mr Moore has arranged finance of up to £1.2 million for one Bolton company and another elsewhere in the UK for £3.5 million.

He said: “There is a lot of networking — getting out speaking to people and getting the message across, which is if someone says No, it’s not the end of the world — keep asking.”

Mr Moore can be contacted by email at ian@ibusinessfinance company.co.uk or at kelly@ibusinessfinance company.co.uk or by calling 07890 676178 or 01204 398816.