Fee and commission income (1999):

Fee and commission income (1999):
£9.5m

49 : Bland Bankart

Pre-tax profit (1999):
£398,000

Head office:
26 De Montfort Street
Leicester
LE1 7GQ
Tel: 0116 254 6221
Fax: 0116 247 0140
e-mail:

website: www.blandbankart.com

Major shareholders:
Philip and Gilbert Bland

Chief officer:
Philip Bland

Biography:
Trained in Birmingham and London, Philip Bland came back to Leicester to set up his own company. He believes that the industry needs more professionalism, and is passionate about training and developing staff. He sets high standards and finds change exciting and challenging. He is constantly on the look-out for exceptionally talented people of any age and experience to recruit and see them grow with the company.

Philip Bland is also chairman of Unitas, the fourth largest insurance buying group in the country.

Company history:
The group was formed in 1960. Starting from one office in Leicester, the group has grown steadily and now has offices in Nottingham, Luton and Cardiff and encompasses seven companies. Recently, Bland Bankart has taken over a small company in Holland and sees great opportunities in Europe, particularly Eastern Europe.

Financial Services has recently won a prestigious award for information technology innovation. The whole group has a good reputation for highly trained and skilled staff who are imbued with excellence in customer service relations.

Main lines of business:
Corporate insurance, financial services, risk management and third-party administration

Number of UK branches:
Five

Number of employees (average for 1999):
220

Greatest technological advance:
Introduction of call centre telephoning and IT system to part of the business.