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April 7 - One of the newest and fastest growing home loan providers in the South African market, Integer, has announced the appointment of a new Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

Bruce Sneddon, who comes with a significant and impressive track record in the financial services industry, will come on board to strengthen Integer's already powerful team of professionals.

A chartered accountant by profession, Sneddon has over a dozen years of financial and management experience. Some of the main positions that Sneddon has held in his career include Financial Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Appleton Group and Group Accountant for Norwich Holdings. Sneddon left the position of Finance and Projects Executive for Truworths to join Integer.

Integer broke into the home loan scene in October 2007 when it was launched by South African Home Loans co-founder Simon Stockley. When Stockley left the SAHL three years ago and sold his stakes, he signed a non-compete agreement which limited his operations in the industry. The time restraint of that agreement ended last year and Stockley immediately set about to form an innovative and progressive new home loan company called Integer.

Stockley has made no secret of the fact that he has his sights on competing with the top four home loan companies in the industry, namely Standard, First National, Absa and Nedbank. At the time of Integer's launch, Stockley said: "We are aiming to replicate what has happened in many international markets by challenging the status quo with a product that is flexible, very competitive on price and provides customers with a service that is personal, easy and fast." At present the 'Big Four' monopolize nearly 100% of the South African home loan industry market, estimated to be worth more than R700-billion.

One of the main advantages of Integer is that it aims to approve home loans within 48 hours - much faster than the average 4 to 7 days offered by other financial institutions. Recently, Integer launched a mobile sales support service to complement its online support team.