P2P GI On Track – May Issue New Shares

P2P Global Investments – the P2P-dedicated investment trust with ties to Marshall Wace – is on track to meet its initial expectations.

P2P GI raised £200m by floating on the London Stock Exchange back in May 2014. At that time the company indicated that it planned to have fully deployed the net proceeds of the listing within 6 to 9 months. Having now allocated 73% of the £200m across a number of different platforms, P2P GI is looking likely to make good on its promise.

It’s worth noting, however, that the 73% deployment figure does not factor in the possible use of leverage. P2PGI has the ability to add up to 1.5x the value of its equity assets via access to leverage. This means, subject to attaining said leverage, that the company’s potential maximum deployment capacity stands at £500m.

In the 6 or so months since its launch, the company has also forged a number of new platform relationships – to go alongside initial arrangements with Zopa, RateSetter, Funding Circle and Crossflow Payments. P2P GI also has the capacity to take equity interests in the platforms through which it invests – and has reportedly increased the number of these stakes since the end of October.

Simon Champ, Chief Executive of MV Eaglewood Europe, the sub-manager of P2P GI, commented:

"This is an exciting investment strategy in a fast growing sector and I am glad to say we are delivering on our plan outlined to investors in the prospectus issued at the IPO."

Having enjoyed so successful a first 6 months, the company is now actively considering raising further funds through the issue of additional equity. The fundraise has been proposed for Q1 2015 – subject to the presence of favourable market conditions and investor demand. If enacted, the move would likely see P2P GI issue equity in the form of a new class of C shares – in order to protect the company’s current shareholders from dilution. Such whisperings suggest that P2P GI is becoming increasingly entrenched within the alternative finance space as one of the key institutional partners of choice.