Edinburgh advisory firm launches property loans fund

Edinburgh-based investment advisory firm Full Circle Partners (FCP) has launched a property fund in a bid to fill a gap in the market by providing short-term liquidity and investment support to established commercial and residential property developers.

FCP has launched FCP Property Development Fund just months after FCP was co-founded in September by tyre entrepreneur Mike Welch, Paul Jarman-Williams, formerly of corporate law firm Dickson Minto, and public relations specialist Nick Freer.

FCP Property Development Fund Loans range from £250,000 to £2.5 million and FCP said the fund had already invested about £6m and was set to reach “in the region of £20m” over the next 12 to 18 months.

Matthew Edgar, a long-time adviser to tyre firm Blackcircles founder Welch, has been appointed to run the fund.

Mr Welch, who was born in Liverpool but moved to Edinburgh after being head-hunted by Sir Tom Farmer to work as Kwik-Fit’s new business and e-commerce manager in 2000, said the property fund “formalises the activity Matthew and I have been engaged on for the last year or so”.

He added that it had become evident that, “by applying tried-and-tested private equity principles to allow property businesses to improve their liquidity through the property development process, there is a big gap in the market for this kind of offering”.

Edgar added: “Mike’s entrepreneurial approach brings a fresh perspective to property funding, which gives the FCP fund flexibility to tailor investment and support to match the property security available.”

FCP’s portfolio of companies include fashion tech start-up Atterley.com.