Allia C&C is pleased to announce that it has acted as Sole Lead Manager on the successful issuance of a £20 million retail‑eligible bond for SFI, a specialist alternative lender. The 3 year bond is the debut issue through SFI’s MTN programme launched in January 2026.
This inaugural transaction marks the first step in SFI’s strategy to become a regular issuer of short‑dated, listed sterling bonds, broadening and diversifying its capital base. SFI provides loans – generally on a secured basis – to SMEs and other borrowers across the UK. The new MTN programme complements SFI’s traditional funding model of issuing unlisted bonds and creates a scalable platform for future public-market issuance.
A first‑of‑its‑kind retail ‘Access Bond’ listed on the London Stock Exchange
The new 3‑year bond carries a 7.5% fixed rate of interest, which rolls up annually and is paid at maturity, providing investors with a cumulative return of over 24% over the life of the bond.
The bond is also the first ever corporate “Access Bond” to be tradeable on the London Stock Exchange, offering investors the benefits of public listing, transparency, and liquidity – a significant development in the market for retail-accessible bonds.
The issue attracted strong demand, with the bonds purchased by over 1,500 individual investors, underlining the broad distribution that can be achieved through an LSE listed security. The issue includes £5.85m bonds retained by the company for sale at a later date.
As Sole Lead Manager, Allia C&C advised on the structure, documentation, and distribution strategy, as well as distributing the bonds through its broking platform. Colleagues at Allia Bond Services will support the ongoing programme and regular issuance. The offer further reinforces Allia C&C’s leading role in delivering capital‑markets access for organisations wishing to reach a wider source of fixed rate funding.
Simmons & Simmons acted as legal counsel for SFI and Pinsent Mason for Allia C&C. US Bank are acting as paying agent for the programme.
Adrian Bell, CEO of Allia C&C said “We have long championed making corporate bonds accessible to a wider investing audience. The success of SFI’s debut public bond reflects constructive collaboration between the London Stock Exchange, innovative issuers such as SFI, and intermediaries committed to widening participation in fixed-income markets.
The new issue demonstrates the importance of transparent, tradeable bonds in supporting the growth ambitions of UK businesses, while offering investors stable, income‑generating opportunities.”
Toby Furnivall of SFI said: “This inaugural issue under our new MTN programme is an important milestone for SFI. We have seen growing appetite among retail investors for stable, predictable income and for access to assets beyond traditional deposits and public market securities, and this programme allows us to meet that demand while diversifying our funding sources and reaching a broader investor audience. The introduction of a tradeable Access Bond on the London Stock Exchange provides a strong foundation for SFI to become a regular issuer of short-dated sterling bonds, supporting UK SMEs and other borrowers with the flexible, secured lending they need to grow.”
Shrey Kohli, Head of Debt Capital Markets at the London Stock Exchange, said: “We’re delighted to welcome SFI plc’s Access Bond to the London Stock Exchange and congratulate the team on a successful issuance. It’s great to see listed debt being opened up to a broader community of investors, and that more issuers are now raising capital following changes for Access Bonds we delivered earlier this year.”
