Beacon

Brian Pitt has resigned from Beacon Homeloans in what the company calls an “amicable agreement”, despite rumours of fierce confrontations with fellow director Mark Abbott.

The director of sales and marketing is reported to have quarreled with Abbott and resigned in protest. Friday May 26 was his official last day, and he does not have another job lined up.

One industry source says: “It’s a controversy - it looks to me as if Brian has been shafted. I only hope that Mark knows what he’s doing.”

However, Andrew Townsend, financial director at Beacon Homeloans, says that there is nothing untoward in Pitt’s departure.

He adds: “In Brian’s own word, it feels the right time for him to have a change of scenery.

“He doesn’t have anything lined up yet, but will continue to take an interest in Beacon through his shareholdings and be an ambassador for the company.”

Although Pitt won’t be replaced at board level, Townsend says the company is currently experiencing a reorganisation that will see Clive Wilson move across from the packaging business to head up the sales side of Beacon Homeloans.

It is also looking to recruit a head of marketing at executive managerial level.

Pitt was unavailable for comment.

Abbott and Pitt have had intertwined career histories with both accredited for the launch of Future Mortgages and Beacon Homeloans.

It was through the duo and Mike Culhane that Friedman Billings Ramsey launched Future Mortgages, which grew from small roots and an initial £100m funding line and was sold to Citigroup in 2001 for around £45m.

In 2003, Abbott, Future’s chief executive, and Pitt, Future's sales director, left the sub-prime lender after its US subsidiary The Associates was fined for predatory lending and Future was forced to withdraw its products from the market while new terms and conditions were incorporated limiting the group's exposure to risk.

In October 2003, Abbott and Pitt regrouped to take a near-50% stake in the financial services firm Beacon Capital Holdings run by Simon Goldthorpe and George Kahn, with Abbott in the role of non-executive chairman of Beacon Capital Holdings and Pitt a director.

Two years later they launched standalone sub-prime lender Beacon Homeloans with a £100m funding line in place through Bayerische Hypo-und Vereinsbank AG.

Although the German lender is its biggest investor, both Abbott and Pitt have equal shareholdings in the company, and it is believe the later will retain these despite his imminent departure.

Beacon Homeloans distributes sub-prime, buy-to-let and self-cert products exclusively through the Regulatory Alliance of Mortgage Packagers, and was recently rumoured to be on the cusp of joining Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association.

Described as a “sales maestro” and a “legend”, Pitt previously worked at the Household Mortgage Corporation back in the 1980s.

Michael Bolton, director of MBAC, says: “This is a very sad day. Brian was highly regarded within the community.”