LONDON: British banking start-up OakNorth is targeting international expansion after closing a $440 million fundraising round led by Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp.
The specialist business and property lender will use the cash injection to launch in the United States before considering further overseas opportunities, Rishi Khosla, the firm’s co-founder and chief executive, told Reuters on Friday.
The fundraising also represented a vote of confidence in British lending, despite mounting concerns over the potential impact of Brexit on the country’s economy, Khosla said.
“Small businesses are the key growth driver in most economies and that’s true in the UK,” he said.
“The fundamentals are absolutely good over a period of time. If you tar a whole segment with the same brush I think that’s incredibly unfair. You’ll always have good businesses and bad businesses.”
SoftBank’s Vision Fund led the round with a $390 million investment, with Clermont Group providing the rest of the cash.
OakNorth, which also provides personal and business savings, has raised more than $1 billion since launching in September 2015 as investors show an appetite for financial technology firms to shake up the banking industry.
The latest investment values the company at around $2.8 billion.
SoftBank’s technology-focused Vision Fund has multi-billion-dollar investments in US companies, including WeWork and Uber.
“SoftBank always has a very large vision for businesses they get involved in and for us we have a relentless focus on small businesses,” Khosla said.
“For us to fulfil that on a global basis having an investor who shares that vision is really important.”
Khosla added that while the firm was now well-funded, there was a possibility it could float within five years.
British media had reported late last year that OakNorth had held talks with SoftBank about a potential investment.
In September, OakNorth had closed a $100 million funding round, which valued it at $2.3 billion at the time.
Saudi-backed SoftBank fund pumps $390m into banking startup
Saudi-backed SoftBank fund pumps $390m into banking startup
- The specialist business and property lender will use the cash injection to launch in the United States before considering further overseas opportunities
- The fundraising also represented a vote of confidence in British lending, despite mounting concerns over the potential impact of Brexit on the country’s economy
Industry leaders highlight Riyadh’s Metro, infrastructure as investment catalysts
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s capital, Riyadh, is experiencing a transformative phase in its real estate sector, with the construction market projected to reach approximately $100 billion in 2025, accompanied by an anticipated annual growth rate of 5.4 percent through 2029.
The Kingdom is simultaneously advancing its data center capacity at an accelerated pace, with an impressive 2.7 GW currently in the pipeline. This expansion underscores the critical role of strategic land and power planning in establishing national infrastructure as a cornerstone of economic growth.
These insights were shared by leading industry experts during JLL’s recent client event in Riyadh, which focused on the city’s macroeconomic landscape and emerging trends across office, residential, retail, hospitality, and pioneering sectors, including AI infrastructure and Transit-Oriented Development.
Saud Al-Sulaimani, Country Lead and Head of Capital Markets at JLL Saudi Arabia, commented: “Riyadh is positioned at the forefront of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, offering unparalleled opportunities for both investors and developers. National priorities are continuously recalibrated to ensure strategic alignment of projects and foster deeper collaboration with the private sector.”
He added: “Recent regulatory developments, including the introduction of the White Land Tax and the rent freeze, are designed to stabilize the market and are expected to drive renewed focus on delivering premium-quality assets. This dynamic environment, coupled with evolving construction cost considerations in select segments, is fundamentally reshaping the market landscape while accelerating progress toward our national objectives.”
The event further underscored the transformative impact of infrastructure initiatives. Mireille Azzam Vidjen, Head of Consulting for the Middle East and Africa at JLL, highlighted Riyadh’s transit revolution. She detailed the Riyadh Metro, a $22.5 billion investment encompassing 176 kilometers, six lines, and 84 stations, providing extensive geographic coverage, with a depth of 9.8 km per 100 sq. km. This strategic development generates significant TOD opportunities, with properties in proximity potentially commanding a 20-30 percent premium. JLL emphasized the importance of implementing climate-responsive last-mile solutions to enhance mobility and accessibility, particularly given Riyadh’s extreme temperatures.
Gaurav Mathur, Head of Data Centers at JLL, emphasized the rapid expansion of the Kingdom’s AI infrastructure, signaling a critical area for technological investment and innovation.
Focusing on the construction sector, Maroun Deeb, Head of Projects and Development Services, KSA at JLL, explained that the industry is actively navigating complexities such as skilled labor availability, material costs, and supply chain dynamics.
He highlighted the adoption of Building Information Modeling as a key driver for enhancing operational efficiency and project delivery.
