'Surround yourself with good people'- Lancashire's Dave Fishwick awarded an OBE for business & charity work

A Lancashire businessman and media star has been named in the King’s latest honours list.

Entrepreneur Dave Fishwick, who inspired Netflix’s Bank of Dave film, has shared his delight at being made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE).

The good news was revealed late last night when the Burnley star was named in the King’s Birthday Honours List.

55-year-old Dave received his OBE for services to finance, business and to charity.

Speaking to the Post, Dave said: “I was so honored to be nominated for an OBE, because normally people get an MBE, and then if they carry on doing a lot of work, they get the OBE, but to get straight in and receive an Officer of the Order of the British Empire is just wonderful.

“To receive it in the North feels special too, because you know there's a lot of awards given away in the South so I really, really appreciate the fact that His Majesty the King has took the time to look at some of the things we've been doing up here, and to give us an award for finance, business, and charity, and the thing I really like is the fact that they've recognized what we've been doing in the banking sector.”

Raised in a working class family in Nelson, Dave left school with no qualifications and went straight into working on building sites for just under £30 a week.

He juggled three jobs, selling clothes at Smithfield Market in Manchester in the morning, building in the day and DJing at nightclubs in the evenings.

The now multi-millionaire made his fortune supplying minibuses before opening an independent lending company to support people following the 2008 financial crash.

The father of two founded Burnley Saving and Loans in 2011 and the story of its success and Dave’s investigations into loan sharks were adapted for 2023’s Bank of Dave, starring Rory Kinnear, and its sequel Bank of Dave 2: The Loan Ranger, released in 2025.

Dave’s humble beginnings have made the honour even more poignant for him.

He told us: “I was 16 years old when I left school, absolutely no qualifications whatsoever, and we were very poor. I didn't even know that people had inside toilets until I got to 11 years old. The house I grew up in were on John Street, Nelson, and it was so bad the whole street got knocked down. It was just terrible but me and my big brother Andrew, we'd go up to the tip and we'd get an old pram and a few bits of wood, and we'd knock it together and build a go-kart, and bomb down the back street. But you know, if I could put my arm around 10 year old Dave and say, look, things are going to be all right, don't worry about it.

“When I left school, I remember being on a roof- because I were a builder’s labourer- tied to a rope around the chimney… water coming out my hobnail boot holes, and I were on £27.50 a week as a builder's labourer as it were a youth training scheme back then, called the YTS, and to go from there to building the first new high street bank for 150 years, and then Hollywood turned up, not just once but twice, and then a musical, and books, and documentaries, and live TV, and now to be to receive an OBE, it's just unbelievable, but if you put your mind to it, you can achieve anything.

“If I can do anything with this OBE, the best thing would be to inspire other people to really go after what's on the mind, you know have the courage to follow your dreams, and self belief is so important- determination, self belief and hard work will put you where some good luck will find you. There's no easy way, there's no get rich quick schemes out there. It's just hard work. Keep focused, believe in yourself, and never ever give up.”

Having achieved his dreams, Dave now works hard to give back to the community that surrounds him, his charity work being mentioned in his OBE listing.

The profits from Burnley Savings and Loans, which has the slogan “Bank on Dave”, go to good causes, often in Lancashire.

Dave, and his wife of over 30 years Nicky, have even committed to giving away 90% of Dave’s estimated £20 million wealth over his lifetime and upon his death.

They focus on smaller causes, rather than “big established charities”- for instance Dave funds breakfast club for an estimated 750 kids across the county, he recently paid for a Lancashire women’s IVF and just this week he opened a library at a primary school in Accrington.

The couple hope to set up a foundation soon to expand their philanthropic reach whilst outside of charity work, Burnley Savings and Loans has lent over £40 million to thousands of people and businesses in need.

Reflecting on his OBE, Dave wanted to add that he could not have done anything without the people that surround him.

He said: “I’d love to mention Davin Henshaw and all the people that work for me across my six businesses. David is my right hand man, he’s an old fashioned bank manager who’s about 75 but has been doing it since he was about 15. He’s just a wonderful, honest, ethical, moral man and if we had more people like that, the world would be a better place.

“All the team at Bank of Dave are wonderful and there’s Matthew Eames who runs the minibus company for me. He’s another good, honest person.

“Of course, I couldn't have done it without Nicky. She just looks after me, she sends me to all these different places around the world and I always get there on time, I always end up where I should be. Everybody needs a Nicky.

“My saying is, if you surround yourself with good people, good things will happen. You can’t do everything by yourself.”