Santander Corporate and Commercial Banking has strengthened its support for UK businesses hoping to expand through international trade with the appointment of three regional specialists.

Peter Smith, Chris Lynch and Simon Dunn have joined Santander’s trade finance team as product directors for the North West, Scotland and Northern Ireland, and the North East and Cumbria respectively.

All three will be responsible for developing and growing the business in their respective regions and working with local partners to provide services to businesses with turnovers of up to £50mn.

Smith has 35 years of banking experience specialising in trade finance, and previously worked for HSBC and Fortis. Lynch has had roles at Barclays, Lloyds and RBS, while Dunn has over 23 years of banking experience with Lloyds, working within its exporting and importing businesses.

The team is led by Martin Hodges, Santander’s head of trade finance.

“A strong regionally- based team enables us to build local knowledge and treat all of our customers on an individual basis, getting to know their businesses and international aspirations to enable us to put together the best financial solutions to help them meet these aims. Our partnerships with organisations like UK Trade & Investment enable to provide a holistic relationship with our customers, focussing on support and advice over the long term.”