Viola Credit, a global alternative credit asset manager, is preparing to launch a €300 million ($347 million) Growth Lending fund aimed at supporting European technology companies with non-equity financing options. This initiative opens a new pathway for tech firms across the UK and Western Europe to secure significant growth capital, typically €10 million to €15 million per company, without diluting shareholder equity. The fund targets up to 50 private-equity-backed firms operating in sectors such as enterprise software, artificial intelligence, fintech, cleantech, and healthtech.
This move by Viola Credit comes at a time when European tech companies often face challenges accessing non-dilutive financing compared to their US counterparts, where debt markets for growth financing are more developed. Backed by major institutional investors, including the British Business Bank and the European Investment Fund, Viola Credit’s fund aims to bridge the financing gap, facilitating capital flows into high-growth tech firms amid a tightening fundraising climate in Europe.
The launch aligns with a broader strategic shift for Viola Credit, which recently closed a $2 billion global asset-backed lending fund designed to support fintech and tech-enabled lenders across multiple regions including the US, UK, Western Europe, and Australia. This larger fund notably exceeded its initial $1.5 billion target and seeks to provide financing solutions encompassing SME finance, payments, consumer credit, and related sectors. Meanwhile, Viola's latest effort to channel funds into Europe’s technology market underscores a growing recognition among institutional investors of the need for more diverse funding avenues to nurture local tech scale-ups.
Industry observers highlight that Europe has historically lagged behind the US and China in cultivating software giants and tech champions. The scarcity of European billion-euro software startups has been a concern for years, intensifying the need for innovative financing structures to fuel growth without forcing entrepreneurs to sacrifice ownership stakes. Viola Credit’s strategy to provide growth lending focused on non-dilutive capital is viewed as a vital step toward enhancing the continent’s competitive edge in technology innovation.
Viola Credit’s extensive experience in asset-based lending also complements this new growth lending initiative. Earlier, the company formed a $500 million strategic joint venture with Cadma Capital Partners, affiliated with Apollo Global Management, focusing on asset-based lending for high-growth tech companies. Additionally, Viola Credit recently supported Hokodo, a European digital payment terms provider, with a €100 million debt facility to fuel its expansion of embedded Pay Later and Pay Now solutions. These efforts collectively illustrate Viola Credit's commitment to flexible financing solutions tailored to the evolving needs of tech firms.
With over $4 billion in management under its various funds, including substantial commitments to tech lending, Viola Credit's latest fund is poised to make a significant impact on the European tech ecosystem. By bolstering alternative funding sources, the company’s move could accelerate innovation across key growth sectors such as AI, fintech, and cleantech, helping Europe claim a larger share of the global technology landscape.
📌 Reference Map:
- [1] Finimize - Paragraphs 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7
- [2] British Business Bank - Paragraphs 1, 2
- [3] PR Newswire (Viola Credit Fund Launch) - Paragraphs 1, 2
- [4] PR Newswire (Cadma JV) - Paragraph 5
- [5] PR Newswire (ABL Fund Close) - Paragraph 5, 6
- [6] Tech.eu (Hokodo Facility) - Paragraph 6
- [7] CB Insights (Viola Credit Overview) - Paragraph 7
Source: Noah Wire Services