Channel Capital Advisors has launched a $300m FinTech lending strategy which will be deployed immediately to leading FinTech lenders.
Channel’s fund will be deployed to digital lending FinTech platforms that require capital to finance their loans to SMEs.
Channel is a UK-based asset manager that is authorised and regulated by the FCA. Over the past 15 years, it has deployed over $20bn of credit assets including loans, working capital facilities, and securities.
Channel has more recently invested heavily in developing systems using APIs, open banking and cloud-based, artificial intelligence driven technologies to prospect, assess and monitor SME credit risk. As well as offering SMEs funding through fintech lenders, Channel’s technology infrastructure will subsequently be available to partners to roll out their own SME lending propositions.
The company’s FinTech Lending Fund will initially be deployed through lending platforms in developed markets in Europe and North America.
Channel’s fund seeks to invest into diverse portfolios of corporate credit risk on a senior or mezzanine basis, with junior participation from the fintech principal. The capital is flexible and can scale rapidly with growth.
Channel CEO Walter Gontarek said, “Providing much-needed capital to the often-overlooked SME sector has always been a goal at Channel. Fintech lending platforms are a critical part of that – making it faster and easier for deserving SMEs to access loans.
“We have been tirelessly enhancing our own digital lending capabilities and have exciting developments coming in that space. Meanwhile, the sizeable investment into our Fintech Lending Fund will see us work with a greater number of tech-powered lending platforms, firstly in Europe and North America, to see capital deployed at pace to the global SME community.”
Paul Wilson – Channel chief investment officer – added, “The investment into our Fintech Lending Fund is a significant step forward for Channel – it will see us work closely with other digital platforms to facilitate loans for SMEs that are faster, simpler, and don’t dilute their business. Indeed, the deployment of dedicated funds like this is crucial in supporting and fuelling the ongoing growth of the global SME sector.
“The backing our fund has received underlines investors’ growing appetite within the fintech lending space. Moreover, it’s a clear demonstration of the trust investors have in Channel’s track record of managing their investments.”
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