How do you build a global financial services firm in a part of the economy most people don’t even know exists? Mia Drennan, Founder and CEO of GLAS, shares how she scaled an independent loan agency business from just £6,000 into a global platform administering hundreds of billions in assets—by stepping into a function that once sat quietly inside banks and turning it into a standalone, high-value service built on execution where the market was falling short.
Mia reflects on GLAS’s origins in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, when broken loans, shifting lender dynamics, and operational gaps created a rare opening for a new kind of intermediary. What began as a scrappy, entrepreneurial response to complex restructuring situations evolved into a global business spanning private credit, banks, and capital markets. She shares how an opportunistic mindset, enabled the firm to grow from early high-stakes mandates into an internationally scaled platform, offering a candid look at how the strategy took shape in practice.
Looking ahead, she discusses GLAS’s shift toward a technology-enabled model, the role of AI in transforming back-office functions, and why trust, culture, and human judgment remain central as the business continues to scale.
Supported by Norman Broadbent: https://www.normanbroadbent.com/
Mia Drennan