Assetz Capital launches Luxembourg-based private fund

The Manchester-based platform said the fund will largely focus on loans to small firms based outside London.

Peer-to-peer platform Assetz Capital has launched a Luxembourg-based private fund, as it bids to boost lending opportunities.

The Manchester-based fintech said the fund will focus on short-term UK loans it originates to small businesses, adding that around 90 per cent of the firms the fund deals with will be based outside London.

Assetz Capital said the fund will be open to institutions, family offices and “other well- informed investors”.

It adds the fund will be run by a FCA-authorised investment manager who will be tasked with “optimising the fund’s investment allocation criteria”.

Assetz Capital, like most peer-to-peer ventures, is racing to add customers and hand out loans to boost scale, and later turn into profits. These fintech firms continue to attract billions from investors who believe this wave of companies can emulate Big Tech giants such as Facebook and Google.  

Assetz Capital chief executive Stuart Law (pictured) said: “This new fund launch provides a new long- term funding structure to further increase the scale of our marketplace and our lending support to UK small and medium sized enterprises. It further expands the universe of investors that can access the Assetz Capital marketplace, alongside our valued retail lenders.”

He added: “This is the first in a number of new institutional and retail funding initiatives that we will be announcing in the coming months as we continue our mission to create one of the UK’s leading sources of secured income for all classes of investors.”

Assetz Capital is in the middle of a cash call that has so far raised around £700,000 as part of its third equity crowdfunding campaign via Seedrs, as it bids to launch new products and secure further institutional funding. The fintech has a £1m target.

The platform, launched in 2013, says its 33,000 lenders have funded over £750m of facilities,  earning themselves £75m in gross interest payments to date.