Success Story
David Newman is Founder and CEO of Firenze, a Manchester-based fintech on a mission to democratise access to Lombard lending - an investment-backed credit product traditionally reserved for high-net-worth individuals. Backed by Outward VC through the British Business Bank’s Enterprise Capital Funds (ECF) programme, Firenze is enabling wealth managers to offer low-interest lending solutions to clients with facilities from £65,000, without moving custody or disrupting investment plans.
| Region/Nation | North West |
|---|---|
| Sector | Technology |
| Programme | Enterprise Capital Funds |
| Partner |
Founded in 2024 by serial fintech entrepreneur David Newman, Firenze’s enterprise-grade lending infrastructure enables IFAs and wealth managers to embed lending directly into their existing client services without requiring asset transfers or disrupting custody relationships. Their platform automates credit decisions, underwriting, and monitoring, allowing advisers to offer secured loans from £65,000 with same-day approvals.
David Newman, Founder and CEO, Firenze said:
We’re taking Lombard lending out of the private bank and into the hands of independent advisers. Opening up an elite financial product to more people in a responsible and scalable way.
At the time of investment, Firenze was still in the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) phase. The capital injection was critical to expanding the engineering team and accelerating development of the platform.
The Investment
Firenze secured a £2.5 million Seed funding round in early 2025, led by Outward VC, a fund manager supported by the British Business Bank via the Enterprise Capital Funds programme.
Outward VC contributed £1.31 million from its ECF-backed fund. The funding is being used to expand Firenze’s partnerships with wealth managers, enhance the platform’s capabilities, and support its goal of enabling over £1 billion in Lombard lending over the next three years.
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