Investec Specialist Private Bank has moved to target investment management professionals with the launch of a new lending facility for closed-ended fund managers in the UK.

Investec believes that there is huge growth potential for a service helping fund managers with deals such as mergers or share buy-backs. The firm is of the view smaller closed-ended funds represent a good investment prospect at the moment, not least because many are under-researched and trading at sizeable discounts to their underlying NAV.

Investec is however keen to emphasise that strict eligibility criteria will be applied when deciding which managers will receive funding.

“We will listen to any fund manager looking for finance to take advantage of this opportunity, but we need to be convinced that they have a strong track record in creating value in the area they specialise in.  We will run a thorough due diligence process on any proposed deal before deciding on whether or not to lend,” said David Drewienka, a member of Investec's Fund Finance team.

In a recent related move, in December Investec announced the launch of a new mortgage service for high net worth individuals whose profession means that they have an irregular income due to lump sum bonuses – with financial services professionals being one client segment which could obviously benefit.

The new mortgage facility – called £Million Plus – is designed so that clients’ overall income and wealth are taken into account, rather than just the value of the property and the person’s monthly income. To qualify borrowers need to earn over £300,000 (around $470,000) a year, have a personal net worth of at least £3 million and be looking to borrow a minimum of £1 million. The bank envisages that its typical applicant will be purchasing a property worth in excess of £1.5 million.