A new investment vehicle that provides funds to support UK property deals has been launched by an Aberdeen-based private equity firm.
Maven Bonds has been designed to provide investors with the chance to diversify their investment portfolio while earning annual tax-free returns of up to 7.75%.
The initiative was launched by Maven Capital Partners in conjunction with fintech firm Growth Capital Ventures (GCV).
It aims to raise up to £7 million from the initial bond offer with minimum investments starting at £1,000.
The bond works by providing secured loans to property developers and property development companies.
Returns are generated by charging interest and fees on these loans.
The firm say the venture has been driven by rising demand for good quality housing and in response to the lack of affordable mainstream finance available to property investors in many sectors such as hotels, student accommodation and residential.
Simon Lenney, independent chairman of Maven Bonds, said: “The Innovative Finance ISA market is growing rapidly, with more than £1 billion invested since April 2016.
“For investors happy to take on more risk, the IFISA is a viable alternative investment product because, in the current climate, traditional cash ISAs are struggling to offer returns that even match the rate of inflation.
“Together with the property teams at Maven and GCV, we’ve already generated a strong pipeline of transactions for Maven Bonds that will help to deliver much-needed high-quality housing developments and commercial property schemes, while delivering better risk-adjusted returns for investors.”
Since January 2015, the combined Maven and GCV advisory team have completed property transactions worth more than £300m, leveraging in excess of £125m of equity in the process.
Craig Peterson, chief operating officer at GCV, said: “Our core objective is to provide investors with higher returns than those currently available through traditional investment routes, while simultaneously providing secured loans for experienced borrowers within the UK property market.”
