While Jonathan was able to point to specific areas that helped Octane make such significant gains over almost nine years, he said the process had still been a gradual one that involved going step by step.

“It entails a lot of consistency and hard work from the team over several years. We started lending in 2017 and have gradually lent more and more each year.

“It's about building consistently month after month, building deep relationships with brokers, being there for brokers, and delivering time and again.”

According to Jonathan, lending to date comprised two major strands: the five-year BTL proposition, which amounted to £300m when it was pulled in 2022 due to rising interest rates, and the rest — an even mix of bridging, development exits and refurbishment loans.

However, the size of its loans has been an area that took Jonathan slightly by surprise, with one particular product taking a front-row seat.

“I think we've probably done more large loans than I might have thought at the outset. The developer exit product has evolved and become a big mainstay for us.”

He said the developer exit product was gaining traction as sales slowed and developers looked for more time to sell completed units.

The number of loans delivered that have involved borrower works — such as refurbs, finishes or exits — also surprised Jonathan, adding it was a natural progression, given the Octane team’s knowledge and experience in handling such cases.

“It's an area where I think we're able to do larger loans and maybe higher leverage than a lot of the competition, and structure things in a way that is easier and cheaper for the borrower. That's enabled us to gain scale quicker than perhaps we might have expected.”

Looking ahead, Octane is keen to continue producing a diverse mix of small and large deals, keeping its loan book granular. In trying to achieve this, the lender encourages its BDMs to maintain their numbers with smaller cases and exceed target with the larger ones.

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“In any given month, we've got a lot of loans completing. And it's that blend between large loans and small loans that enables us to have quite a successful loan book.”

For the future, Octane has its eyes on new lending areas, including regulated bridging and commercial. Meanwhile, Jonathan is also flirting with the idea of bringing back the five-year BTL product.

“It is something that we'd like to do. I think the market is ripe for that product again. We certainly get a lot of questions from our broker network about it.

“Maybe it's premature to say watch this space, but it's certainly something we're looking closely at.”

However, Jonathan acknowledged that it was not just its product offerings that had allowed Octane to reach the £2bn lending milestone. He pointed to the market’s growth since 2017, suggesting that its value has roughly doubled across that time.

He highlighted refurbishment loans as an example of evolution in the market, and noted how regular banks — and, in some cases, challenger banks — were not as able to accommodate these as specialist finance lenders.

The entrance of challenger banks has also created more market professionalisation, according to Jonathan, and further saturation has led to positives for borrowers.

“I think rate compression is something that has happened because of the competition. It's a good thing. Funding costs for lenders have come down significantly, which has enabled us to lend at lower rates.

“The rates are much lower than they were many years ago, so the economics work in a lot more scenarios for a lot more deals. And that's why borrowers are prepared to take it on. The lower the rates, the bigger the target audience.”

Looking ahead, with the potential for new products in what Jonathan saw as a favourable market, ambitious targets have been set.

The firm plans to double its existing loan book of £500m to £1bn over the next five years. However, to do this, a larger headcount is needed.

“Almost certainly over the next two to three years, we'll double the size of the team and seek to triple our lending volumes to try and hit the sorts of targets that we've got,” he said.

“So it's big ambitions for the future.”