Foot Anstey advises Quilam Capital on two investments in Raylo and Merchant Money
Solicitors at Bristol-based law firm Foot Anstey have advised Quilam Capital, which provides financial solutions coupled with expert guidance to businesses operating in the speciality finance market, on the equity aspects of its investments in Raylo and Merchant Money.
Established in 2017, Quilam Capital supports its portfolio in accelerating business growth, accessing external funding and refining strategic direction through dedicated senior support and bespoke capital solutions.
The Foot Anstey team included Matthew Stoate (head of corporate and private equity), Dominic Cromwell (senior associate) and Benjamin Smith (trainee solicitor).
Quilam Capital's investment into Raylo, a leading fintech that provides consumers with access to high-value tech products on affordable monthly subscriptions, is part of a £110 million debt financing facility from NatWest and Quilam Capital to support ambitious growth plans.
Raylo's subscriber base has grown 100 per cent year on year and the company expects growth to accelerate in light of current economic conditions.
Merchant Money, a provider of secured and unsecured loans to SMEs across the UK, has secured £115m of additional funding from Barclays Bank PLC and Quilam Capital which will enable it to grow its lending books across its secured and unsecured product offerings.
Jordan Blakesley, director at Quilam Capital who led the Raylo investment said: "We are very pleased to be supporting Raylo’s management team who have developed a dynamic and highly scalable platform.
"The size of the opportunity is very compelling and by joining forces with NatWest and existing global investors, we look forward to realising Raylo’s ambitious growth goals over the coming years. We were very impressed by the work carried out by Foot Anstey; the team were pragmatic and responsive throughout both transactions whilst always remaining commercial in their approach."
Matt Glew, director at Quilam Capital who led the Merchant Money investment said: “We are very happy to be supporting Merchant Money into what we expect to be a very exciting next stage of its journey.
"Despite the current headwinds, there remains significant market opportunity in the SME space which the business is now in a prime position to fully capitalise on. We have been very impressed by the ambitions of the management team and are looking forward to seeing our capital deployed in order to help achieve their goals.”
Dominic Cromwell said: "We were delighted to advise Quilam Capital on these investment opportunities. Quilam Capital's pro-active and flexible approach makes it an attractive and credible alternative to traditional lenders, and we look forward to continuing to support the team on future opportunities."
