Chicago-based Victory Park Capital has set out plans to raise £200 million through a listing on the London Stock Exchange for a new vehicle which will invest through person-to-person lending platforms.
The new vehicle, VPC Specialty Lending Investments, says it plans to publish its prospectus this week, with trading to begin around 17 March.
The person-to-person lending industry has benefited over the last couple of years from the caution shown by high street banks in the wake of the financial crisis. In the UK, P2P lending hit more than £1.2 billion in 2014, while in the US the sector's strength was highlighted by Lending Club's recent IPO.
A recent benchmarking report from the University of Cambridge estimates that the overall European alternative finance industry is on track to grow beyond €7 billion in 2015
VPC Specialty is targeting a net dividend yield of eight per cent and a net total return in excess of 10% per annum, once the proceeds of the issue are fully invested.
Earlier this month Victory Park Capital agreed a deal to finance up to $420 million in loans to small businesses originated through Funding Circle in the UK and US over the next three years. The new vehicle says that the existing relationships its parent has within the industry means that it hopes to be able to put all of the funds to use within six months.
Brendan Carroll, co-founder, Victory Park Capital, says: "Victory Park Capital has experience in both direct lending and purchasing whole loans, as well as extensive knowledge of sector participants and the complex regulatory requirements needed to operate in the industry. With its significant sourcing network, Victory Park Capital Advisors has identified a strong pipeline of investment opportunities in which the company may invest."