Manchester-based FinTech Firenze has announced a landmark partnership with AJ Bell Investcentre, one of the UK’s largest investment platforms.
Firenze, launched in January 2024 by co-founders David Newman and Anna Curtis, is an embedded finance platform that allows wealth managers to offer loans from as little as £65,000, secured against clients’ investment portfolios.
Following the partnership, advisers using the AJ Bell Investcentre platform will be able to refer high-net-worth clients to Firenze and facilitate Lombard lending.
Lombard lending enables clients to borrow against the value of their General Investment Account (GIA) or offshore bond, subject to meeting certain eligibility and lending criteria.
This can be done without selling assets, disrupting a client’s investment strategy or triggering capital gains tax.
David Newman, CEO of Firenze, said: “The demand for Lombard lending continues to grow as advisers increasingly see the value it can have in meeting clients’ liquidity needs.
“Whether used to meet an immediate cost or as part of a longer-term wealth strategy, clients increasingly understand how utilising both sides of their personal balance sheet can help them achieve their goals.
“It has been a real pleasure working with the AJ Bell team to bring this capability to assets held on AJ Bell Investcentre.”
Mark Rendle, AJ Bell advised managing director, said: “Advisers are increasingly looking for tax-efficient ways to protect client wealth, and Lombard lending gives advisers and clients the option to flexibly manage liquidity to fund a range of financial plans.
“Through our link with Firenze, advisers can help high-net-worth clients borrow against the value of their assets without disrupting their investment strategy or, importantly, triggering capital gains tax with an asset sale.”
AJ Bell is the latest platform partner for fast-growing Firenze, which works with firms representing combined assets under management (AUM) of £200bn.
In April 2o26, Firenze raised £6m in a round led by AlbionVC, with follow-on participation from all major existing investors, including Outward VC and Form Ventures.