Mayfair Bridging, which has recently completed a move to offices in central London, has announced that the scheme will allow investors to earn a return from bridging loans which are selected for investment.

Investors will be able to lend money towards bridging finance transactions sourced by Mayfair, whether investing alone or jointly with other financiers.

Financiers will only be exposed to those bridging loans which they have chosen to invest in, with the nominee lender holding a first legal charge in trust on their behalf.

Mayfair has also expressed an intent to pay, on average, a net return of 10.2 per cent annually.

The scheme will be promoted through IFAs who will be paid 1 per cent commission for each investor who they refer to the scheme.

The FSA-authorised scheme is based on the concept of peer-to-peer lending and is only suitable for certified sophisticated or professional investors. 

The lender has asked investors to consider the recent volatility in the stock and commodities markets in recent years, which could make investing in bridging loans an attractive alternative.

Shoaib Bux, director at Mayfair, said: “Unlike many other bridging loan funds out there, ours is unique, in that the investor is the one who makes the decision to invest into a particular loan. This is a peer-to-peer lending scheme and Mayfair will only act as a nominee lender on instruction from the authorised operator. 

“Investors in other schemes usually have to put their money into a pot and leave it for the asset manager or lender to lend those monies how they see fit. With our scheme, we have put the power with the investor: it is up to them if they want to put money towards a certain deal. They do their own due diligence based on the information provided to them.”

Shoaib added: “I think we are unique in the market in terms of promoting a peer-to-peer scheme via IFAs for bridging loans. We believe that this will give us a lot of flexibility, so that for a good deal with a low LTV where we are competing on the rate, we can speak to our investor pool and ultimately offer a more competitive rate to the borrower.’’

“We don’t have any pressure to lend, unlike in other fund models, as we are not paying non-utilisation fees or having to provide a return on non-invested funds.’’

Yasin Patel, director at Mayfair, added: “We intend to start promoting and to announce a formal launch in the New Year from our Mayfair office.’’