One of the founding members of premium finance specialist Aascent, Simon Horswell, resigned from the company last week.

Horswell, who was director, sales and marketing, was part of the initial team of three which started the commercial lines finance specialist in 2002.

The other two founders, managing director Kevin O'Flanagan, and Ed Ferrell remain with the company.

O'Flanagan said: "He [Horswell] resigned last Friday for personal reasons."

Ferrell has now been appointed as the director, sales and operations.

He said of his promotion: "The strategic idea is to combine the role of broker relations with the role of customer service.

"This would guarantee that the promises we make in the field are implemented absolutely in the office - to promise service above the rest and deliver service above the rest."

Aascent is backed by Barclays Bank and offers premium finance services to various commercial lines brokers.