Virgin Money https://uk.virginmoney.com has announced the appointment of Mark Schuurman as their new Agricultural Business Manager for the east of England , an area encompassing Peterborough, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk. In this newly created position, Mark joins Virgin Money’s growing team of specialist advisors supporting farming clients across the UK with their financial and investment planning for the future.

From a farming background and with two degrees, one in History and another in Banking Practice & Management, Mark brings a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing the UK farming sector, together with 12 years’ experience in agricultural client management with HSBC and Oxbury Bank. In his new role with Virgin Money, he will build relationships with existing and new clients to offer the bank’s tailored range of funding, advisory, and management capabilities to the farming sector.

At what is a critical time for the farming industry, Brian Richardson, Virgin Money’s Head of Agriculture, welcomes Mark to Virgin Money’s Agricultural team; “Virgin Money has a long track record of commitment to helping farmers to plan and manage the investment they need to make for their future. Right now, the industry is facing an unprecedented combination of challenges in managing rising costs and adapting to the Government’s new environmentally-focused support policies, and the need for the best financial planning and investment support has never been more crucial.

“Mark Schuurman has the ideal combination of personal empathy for our farming clients and professional skills to build relationships of trust, explain and deliver our unique funding solutions, like our Agri E-Fund, and help clients find the best way forward to a sustainable future.”

Growing up on a farm in Suffolk, Mark has farming in his blood, and a deep personal commitment to the industry which he believes he can serve best with Virgin Money.

“Farming is always subject to uncertainty, but in the past three years or more the normal uncertainties of weather and market conditions have been multiplied many times over by global economic problems, inflation, and most significantly by the post-Brexit changes in farming support policies.

“Virgin Money has always had a great reputation for its understanding of the agricultural sector, and no bank has responded more effectively to the changes facing farming. So I am really looking forward to working with the team of Agricultural specialists and offering the bank’s unique support to clients at a time when they need it most.”