Assetz Capital lends £370m through CBILS
Assetz Capital lent £370m to UK small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS).
In May last year, the peer-to-peer lending platform was accredited under the government-backed scheme to deliver property-secured commercial mortgages and development loans to SMEs.
In August, Assetz Capital announced Nordic finance provider Aros Kapital as an institutional funder for its CBILS loans.
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British Business Investments, a commercial subsidiary of the British Business Bank, also provided funding for Assetz Capital’s CBILS lending.
Three-quarters (75 per cent) of the platform’s CBILS lending went to areas outside of London and the South East, including funding 2,000 new homes across the UK.
Assetz Capital also said it has an ongoing commitment with Aros Kapital and expects to be approved for the recovery loan scheme. This scheme launched on 6 April, replacing previous support programmes including CBILS.
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“CBILS has been hugely successful in getting funds to the SMEs that needed it,” said Stuart Law (pictured), chief executive at Assetz Capital.
“The pandemic hit many SMEs hard, but arming specialists like ourselves with a government-backed scheme was a solid strategy that has paid off.
“Our substantial track record has allowed us to attract institutional investors like Aros Kapital as long-term funding partners, meaning SMEs across the UK have an alternative to the banks when it comes to accessing finance.
“Our loan issuance run rate approached £700m annually in the pandemic and even though the CBILS deadline has now passed, together with our funding partners we plan to build on that level of support for SMEs based on a very healthy pipeline.”
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“We are delighted with our ongoing relationship with Assetz Capital and are looking forward to expanding our partnership,” said Gustav Rocklinger, chief executive at Aros Kapital.
“As evidenced by the pace of our deployment under CBILS, leveraging our joint underwriting capabilities, we believe that we are in a very good position to continue to deliver attractive financing solutions across sectors and at significant scale to UK SMEs.
“The UK SME market is a core growth area for our business, and we will continue to build our market presence, in collaboration with Assetz Capital.
“Our backing of Assetz Capital’s CBILS lending programme demonstrates that commitment and showcases the strength of our capital base and ability to deploy this, quickly and with certainty to our funding partners.”