Capital A Finance is bringing in a new institutional investor to help boost its lending. The lender was founded by former Investec bankers Daniel Austin and Jonathan Arnst and launched on 2nd August 2012.
The new investor will replace The William Pears Group, which has backed Capital A to build its loan book of around £200 million since its launch.
The introduction of an institutional investor is part of a plan put in place when the company was set up in order to continue the lender’s growth.
The William Pears Group’s stake in Capital A will be taken on by the new investor, as well as the loans it has issued.
These include September’s collaborative £62.5 million bridging loan with Dragonfly Property Finance to take out a ‘called-in’ Co-operative Bank senior loan.
In October, Capital A and Investec SPF completed a joint £26.9 million debt facility to support a residential redevelopment scheme on High Street Kensington.
Capital A provides loans from £1 million to £100 million across a range of sectors and types of finance, but specialises in development loans and projects with asset management angles.
The lender has financed substantial residential, commercial and mixed-use property acquisitions and refinances, as well as office-to-residential redevelopments. It is able to structure loans through senior, mezzanine, acquisition, bridging and development finance.
As well as its main property activities carried out by the group and through its outsourcing arm, The William Pears Group backs and owns a stake in Masthaven Bridging Finance.
In February 2011, Masthaven sold a significant minority stake in the company to The William Pears Group, which is the primary investment vehicle of the billionaire Pears brothers. The transaction involved an undisclosed eight-figure investment being made into Masthaven.
Andrew Bloom, Managing Director of Masthaven Finance, told B&C: “I have had the pleasure of working with The William Pears Group for the last three years and look forward to this partnership continuing for many more years.”
Sources have informed B&C that The William Pears Group will still maintain a working relationship with Capital A until such a time that the new institutional investor can fully take over its stake.
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