Exclusive: Alternatives investment fintech Darksquare launches with Plend partnership

Darksquare, a new consumer fintech offering alternative investments, has launched. 

Founded by Daniel Harman and Alex Whitney in 2022, Darksquare wants to be a one-stop shop for alternative assets such as private debt, distressed credit, real estate and renewable energy projects, forestry investments, hedge funds and more. 

Typically these assets are only available to the most well-heeled investors as they require minimum investments in the region of hundreds of thousands of pounds. 

Last week, London-based Darksquare began onboarding from its waitlist of 600 people for its first live deal with a £5,000 minimum investment.

The launch offer is a fractionalised private debt investment via alternative lender Plend. Darksquare has a £300,000 allocation to the funding deal.

Founded in 2022 by Robert Pasco and James Pursaill, Plend is a consumer lender offering green energy loans for homeowners seeking to renovate their homes.

The company raised £260k via Seedrs crowdfund last year.

"We're excited about partnering with Plend for our first live deal. It's a top of the capital structure, low-risk deal which still yields over 10 per cent, exactly what we're looking to offer our customers. On top of that, it's also helping more people in the UK get access to credit. It's a genuinely ESG positive investment with a strong yield," said Daniel Harman, the Co-Founder & CEO of Darksquare said.  

This double-digit return, it should be noted, is before fees or potential losses. Fees are 1 per cent upfront on investment sums with a further 1 per cent annual management fee on assets.