Fintech disruptor Payver launches equity crowdfunding 

Payver, the provider of short-term finance to smaller companies, is delighted to announce the launch of an equity crowdfunding round. The company is looking to raise £300,000 on the Crowd for Angels platform in exchange for 20% of the business.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Payver is revolutionising the small business financing marketplace using Blockchain and distributed ledger technology to speed up transaction processing.
• Provides small businesses with short-term funding against received card payments.
• Earns revenues from monthly subscription and transaction fees.
• Payver has been valued by an investment fund of a well known high street bank at £1.5 million.
• The business plan targets £39 million of revenues by year 3, with the company aiming for an IPO in 2018/19.
• Minimum investment of just £25.

To see the full pitch visit https://www.crowdforangels.com/company/Budget-Outsourcing-Service-Ltd-TA-Payver-53

Mike Atkinson, Founder and Director of Payver, commented: “Payver is revolutionising the market for small business finance using its bespoke Fintech software. We are excited that investors have the opportunity to invest in a business that helps British start-ups and SME's to grow".

For further information please contact:
Payver       
Mike Atkinson                 0843 2896250

Crowd for Angels       
Tony de Nazareth    020 7437 2413



Innovate Finance and BritishAmerican Business sign strategic partnership to champion transatlantic FinTech growth

Innovate Finance, the membership association for global FinTech, today announced a strategic partnership with BritishAmerican Business, the leading transatlantic business association. Both organisations will work together to champion and help FinTech firms connect and build their businesses and ecosystem on both sides of the Atlantic.

The collaborative partnership will forge closer FinTech ties between New York and London – making it easier for companies to expand their operations from the world’s two biggest financial hubs and the leading global cities for FinTech.

Alastair Lukies CBE, Chairman of Innovate Finance said: “As the next wave of innovation in financial services begins to evolve, we are seeing London and New York emerge as the epicentres of collaboration between the incumbents and disruptors, between regulators and innovators, and investors and entrepreneurs. The partnership with BritishAmerican Business provides an ideal platform for both organisations to continue to champion the global agenda for the FinTech ecosystem, and to maximise benefits to their respective members on both sides of the Atlantic.”

Jeffries Briginshaw, Chief Executive of BritishAmerican Business said: “We are delighted to partner with Innovate Finance to bridge our memberships in the US and UK along the axis of FinTech. The pace of innovation in this sector is rapid, and we aim to be out in front as we agree the collaborations that will drive an exciting joint program for 2016 and beyond – initially focused in New York. Our ability to provide information, access, and influence among our members and policymakers will be significantly enhanced by this cooperation.”

A major highlight of the partnership initiative is an annual transatlantic FinTech event in New York that will bring members from both organisations together to celebrate the sector’s accomplishments for the year.

The organisations will also create the world’s first transatlantic advanced FinTech course between two top universities in the US and the UK, to be announced in early 2016. 

Hogan Lovells, the global strategic legal partner for Innovate Finance and a member of BritishAmerican Business, will provide legal counsel for the alliance. Commenting on the new agreement Rachel Kent, partner at Hogan Lovells, said: “We are delighted to support Innovate Finance and BritishAmerican Business in this new initiative. Given the strength of our own transatlantic and regulatory capabilities, particularly in New York, Washington and London, we look forward to helping nurture the FinTech entrepreneurs and emerging businesses that this alliance will foster."

ThinCats gears up for growth as ESF takes a majority stake

• Europe’s first P2P institutional accelerator, ESF Capital, has taken a 73.4% equity stake in established peer-to-peer business lender ThinCats, and is providing working capital investment
• This enhances ThinCats’ proposition for both lenders and borrowers through technology and marketing resources, product development, and additional staff
• ESF is also providing underwriting and lending capital to accelerate loan growth

ThinCats, Europe’s largest SME secured lending platform, has just been acquired by a new market entrant. ESF Capital has taken a 73.4% stake in ThinCats, which has lent more than £140m since its foundation five years ago.

ThinCats has lent more than £140m to UK businesses in five years of operation. ESF invests in, and underwrites the loans on, select European P2P platforms, and brings operational expertise to accelerate the growth of such platforms. It is backed by leading UK and US institutions, and is the initiative of European specialist investment company, ESO Capital. ThinCats and ESF have been working together for a number of months and have a detailed plan to accelerate ThinCats’ market presence.

ESF has purchased a 73.4% equity stake from existing owners of ThinCats and is providing valuable investment capital for the ThinCats platform, together with underwriting capital for loans. ThinCats’ focus on experienced private investor funding of UK businesses remains a cornerstone of the ongoing business, which will be enhanced through ESF’s capital and deep institutional financial services expertise.

ESF’s CEO, John Mould, has taken on the role of CEO of ThinCats with overall responsibility for driving the business’ growth strategy and delivering a raft of benefits for borrowers and lenders. Founder Kevin Caley remains instrumental in the future of the business as Chairman with responsibility for innovation and Peter Brown retains his post as Finance Director.

The investment from ESF will allow ThinCats to carry out planned platform improvements and develop new products to help expand ThinCats’ footprint in the UK. A newly revamped platform will significantly improve the user journey for current ThinCats users, while a planned pipeline of product developments will seek to attract a broader range of investors.

Increased lending capacity together with ESF’s loan underwriting capability will ensure ThinCats can attract more quality SME borrowers onto the platform and in turn provide lenders much greater breadth and depth of loan choice. ESF will also strengthen ThinCats’ internal due diligence capabilities, reviewing and categorising the quality of each loan, enhancing the detailed vetting already carried out by ThinCats’ Sponsors, who originate business on the platform.

Kevin Caley, Founder and Chairman of ThinCats said:

“Over the past five years, ThinCats has become highly valued by a network of hundreds of experienced DIY investors who bring a unique ‘crowd due diligence’ to the platform in return for market-leading interest rates. This investment by ESF is the fuel we need to take the ThinCats platform up a gear, to retain and extend this core lender base and to attract a broader range of investors. It’s a big step forward for the platform, and will allow ThinCats to cement its place as one of the UK’s big four peer to peer providers.”

John Mould, newly appointed CEO of ThinCats said:

“ThinCats sits on unique foundations. It has the largest average loan size in the sector, and has been first to market with a number of innovative financial products. The injection of capital and expertise we are bringing to the platform from ESF will focus on strengthening these foundations, pushing loan sizes higher, and developing both products and platform to attract a wide range of investors. The peer to peer lending industry is truly coming of age, and today one of the longest of tooth gets a little sharper.”

 

Anthemis Group Appoints Industrial Designer Erica Young as Director

Anthemis Group, a leading financial services investment and advisory firm, has announced that Erica Young has joined the group as director, based in London.  An experienced industrial designer, Erica will apply design methodologies to the innovation challenges and opportunities facing Anthemis’ advisory clients and portfolio companies. Erica will join Anthemis’ advisory team and report to Nadeem Shaikh, founder and president of Anthemis Group.

Erica joins Anthemis Group from Insight Robotics Ltd, where she held the position of chief product officer and now serves as advisor to the organisation.  Erica has extensive experience in developing and manufacturing products in China for international markets and has worked in a range of different product areas including internet-of-things, fashion, clean energy and robotics. She has been active in the development of the Hong Kong startup ecosystem as an entrepreneur, mentor and teacher of design and social innovation at Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Commenting on Erica’s appointment, Nadeem Shaikh said: “We think about the future of financial services through the lens of design: achieving the optimal balance of harmony at the intersection of product, user and environment. There are newly emerging patterns in financial services and Erica’s fresh perspective will help us continue to identify and create opportunities for our clients.”

Erica Young added: “Joining Anthemis enables me to apply my background in design methodology to a large vertical that is undergoing dramatic change. Financial services will look very different in the future and it’s exciting time to be part of a company that is driving the change in this space.”