We’re DF Capital, a specialist savings and commercial lending bank built to serve the needs of individuals and businesses in the UK. From straightforward savings to practical commercial finance solutions, our aim is to provide you with first class customer service to help manage and grow your business or your savings.
Our history
Founded in 2016 as a niche commercial lender, we began a mission to help small and medium- sized businesses (SMEs) across the UK by providing them with flexible finance products that support the growth of their businesses.
We were authorised as a bank in September 2020, which has enabled us to begin offering personal savings accounts to individual customers while continuing to maintain and develop the support we provide for UK businesses. Becoming a bank allows us to better support our existing customers and to widen that support to both new commercial and personal savings customers.
Our people
Our team is built of knowledgeable and experienced specialists in savings and commercial lending. Delivering a trusted, reliable and customer focused experience is at the heart of our business. We are proud of the strong, long-term relationships and reputation we have built over the years with our commercial customers and will deliver on those same principles to our personal savings customers.
Our Management Team
Carl D’Ammassa
Chief Executive Officer
Carl has over 20 years’ experience working in commercial and SME finance, with extensive divisional managing director and CEO experience built across a number of UK based businesses. Carl previously held the position of CEO at White Oak UK, a specialist lender to SMEs. Prior to this Carl was Group Managing Director at Aldermore Bank, leading its growing business lending franchise. He spent 10 years at GE Capital, and later took roles at Hitachi Capital and Hydrex Ltd. Carl has previously been Chairman and a Board Director of The Leasing Foundation and was a Non-Executive Director of AFS Group Holdings Ltd.
Gavin Morris
Chief Financial Officer
Gavin possesses over 20 years of financial services experience across banking, corporate lending and leasing. Gavin has deep finance expertise in a regulated environment from his time at GE Capital Bank in the role of Acting CFO and in a number of “Head of” finance roles including Treasury, Regulatory Reporting, Controllership, Pricing and FP&A. Gavin was involved in both the set up and dismantling of GE Capital Bank. Gavin is a qualified chartered accountant and spent 10 years with KPMG.
Goi Ashmore
Chief Risk Officer
Goi joined us in August 2023 most recently from Metro Bank (UK), where he was responsible for second line of defence for financial, prudential and strategic risks and prior to that the position of Chief Risk Officer at Bank North, based in Manchester. Goi has over 18 years’ senior management experience in Risk and Treasury gained at Barclays, and Atradius, including holding senior risk management responsibilities, including Underwriting, Compliance and Financial Crime. He has in-depth experience of implementing systems and controls in a regulated environment, and a thorough understanding of cyber security in the sector.
Goi has held a number of non-executive positions in the third sector including chairing the Audit and Risk Committee for Shelter and Treasury Committee for Riverside Housing Group. He is currently Treasurer and Pro Chancellor Elect for Swansea University.
Paul Atherton
Director - Operations
Paul has more than 15 years’ experience within the banking and financial services industry and is a senior operations and project leader with a proven track record within start-up and challenger banks during the design, implementation and growth phases. Part of the mobilisation team at OakNorth and later Head of Operations as well as holding various Operational and Transformation leadership roles at Aldermore Bank, Paul has led customer services and collections, lending and savings products, cash and treasury operations, data management and transformation and change.
Richard Baxter
Director - Credit
Richard has over 30 years’ commercial, risk and business change experience, across the asset based lending (ABL), SME finance and the wider banking spaces. Richard has previously held roles at Aldermore where he led the portfolio risk team, covering the invoice and specialist finance product lines. Before Aldermore, he built a strong portfolio of experience at the Royal Bank of Scotland in its ABL, invoice discounting and working capital product divisions.
Garry Frew
Chief Commercial Officer
Garry has over 17 years’ experience in global business finance with a focus on building customer relationships at a senior level. He has previously held positions at Wells Fargo as strategic relationship leader where he managed a large team and was for responsible for a $3 billion global portfolio, and GE Capital where he held a number of director-level roles focused on managing key accounts and delivering strategic targets.
Garry has an executive MBA from London Business School and extensive experience of financial planning, analysis and reporting.
Charlie Michael
Chief Sustainability & People Officer
Charlie has more than 20 years financial services experience, including ten years at Aldermore Bank as well as spending time at Merrill Lynch and Formation Asset Management. Charlie has worked across all HR disciplines, including business partnering, HR support services, training and development, as well as talent management and recruitment. Charlie is a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development.
