Member Article

Record bid to turn BankToTheFuture Into The first crowdfunded transparent investment bank

BankToTheFuture.com has just launched a UK record £2m CrowdFunding bid in order to become the world’s first transparent CrowdInvestment Bank.

While many Crowdfunding sites have marketed themselves as an alternative to banking, BankToTheFuture.com, which has helped businesses raise £487,000 pounds since it launched in August 2012, plans to apply for a banking licence so it can expand its range of products to include things such as retail bonds. To do so, BankToTheFuture is liaising with the British government, regulators and the Bank of England, is being advised by Fiona Brownsell, who was involved in helping set up Metro Bank.

“The fundamental difference about what we are doing that would be different from other people with banking licences is transparency … everyone can see exactly what happens with their money. What we want to do is a lot less risky than the banking model simply because we are not going to be leveraging people’s money.

“We at BankToTheFuture.com have always been very careful to make sure that investors understand what investing in private companies means and armed with this information people are able to make investment decisions assisted by the diligence of the crowd through transparent platforms like our platform.

“Our commitment has extended above and beyond the FCA requirements as we spend a minimum of four to six weeks with the businesses incubating them to ensure they are Crowd-Investment ready. This allows investors to access information about the business in a standard format” said Simon Dixon, CEO & Co-Founder BankToTheFuture.com a director of the UK Crowdfunding Association.

BankToTheFuture.com needs to raise 2 million pounds over the next two months, in what would be the UK’s biggest ever equity Crowdfunded deal, to invest in both technology and the regulatory process and hopes to have its licence within 3 years.

Simon Dixon, co-founder, CEO and author of ’Bank to The Future’

Simon Dixon was originally trained as an economist, before starting his career in investment banking. By career he was originally a trader before moving into corporate finance where he helped venture capitalists exit their companies onto the London Stock Exchange. Having worked with venture capitalists and helped companies go public, raised angel finance for his first business, helped businesses raise alternative finance, written two books on the future of banking, Simon Dixon had the passion to work with entrepreneurs and do something a bit disruptive in the banking sector.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by BankToTheFuture.com .