- £110m receivables financing facility to fund growth and product expansion
- Raylo’s market leading AI models enable it to serve more customers than traditional methods
- Consumers seeking affordability have grown Raylo’s subscriber base by over 100% year-on-year
- Raylo becomes a BCORP as its circular model reduces emissions by over 50%
London, 30th of January 2023. Raylo, a leading fintech, has agreed a new £110m debt financing facility from NatWest bank and Quilam Capital. Given the challenging macro and fundraising environment, this substantial new financing package is a strong validation of Raylo’s business model and its position at the forefront of developing and accelerating the circular economy.
“We are delighted to have been able to support Raylo’s future growth ambitions with this new financing facility. The business’ commitment to changing the way consumer electronics are sold and enjoyed is extremely well aligned with NatWest’s ESG objectives and passion for innovation and disruptive technologies.” said Milena Sheahan, Senior Director at NatWest. “Raylo are a progressive, forward thinking business, with a solid platform to positively influence consumer behaviour and attitude towards use of technology in the future. We are proud to have Raylo join us as a valued client within NatWest’s Speciality Finance customer franchise”.
Raylo’s subscriber base has grown over 100% year on year, and the company expects growth to accelerate as persistently high UK inflation means consumers are increasingly demanding access to the products they need on a low monthly subscription.
“We are thrilled to have the support of NatWest Bank and Quilam Capital as we continue to grow and innovate,” said Karl Gilbert, co-founder and CEO of Raylo. “This financing supports our strategy to further expand our platform and provide even more customers with affordable and sustainable access to the tech products they really want.”
Raylo, which currently provides consumers with access to high value tech products on affordable monthly subscriptions, plans to grow both its direct to consumer channel and its checkout integration for merchants (Raylo Pay), where the pipeline of retailers has grown 10x in the last 6 months to a £3Bn p.a. opportunity.
“We at Quilam are very pleased to be supporting Raylo’s management team who have developed a dynamic and highly scalable platform. The size of the opportunity is very compelling and by joining forces with NatWest and existing global investors, we look forward to realising Raylo’s ambitious growth goals over the coming years.” said Jordan Blakesley, Director at Quilam Capital.
The company’s innovative risk platform, which utilises AI models and open banking data to reach more customers than traditional methods, played a significant role in attracting the new investment. This platform has been successful in achieving market-leading credit approval rates for high-value consumer electronics orders, with average order values exceeding £1,000.
“Raylo is solving a real problem for consumers, who are increasingly looking for more affordable and sustainable ways to access the latest technology,” said Richard Fulton, co-founder and CSO at Raylo. “We are confident that Raylo’s innovative approach and use of technology will continue to drive strong growth and success in the future.”
Raylo has raised over £150m to date, including existing equity investors: Octopus Ventures, Macquarie Bank and Telefónica. This latest debt financing includes new Raylo infrastructure that is built for scale, with the intention to tap the securitisation markets in the future.
Raylo is also announcing its BCORP status, doubling down on its mission to accelerate the circular economy in consumer electronics and other categories of durable goods. Building on its commitment to drive adoption of the circular economy, products on subscription are returned to Raylo, refurbished and reused across multiple users over six or more years. Raylo’s circular model also eradicates e-waste – at the end of useful life products are sustainably recycled, rather than languishing in landfill.
Raylo’s sustainability report underlines that over 50% of emissions can be saved by extending the life of existing products and avoiding unnecessary overproduction of new products.
Raylo’s business and technology will deliver meaningful wins for both consumers and merchants in this challenging macro environment and the company is excited about its growth and product expansion strategy, which will include new retail categories.