The Intermediary – January 2026 - Flipbook - Page 44
In Profile.
Q&A
Jessica Bird speaks with Ray Palmer, director at Suros
Capital, about the rise of luxury asset-backed lending
R
ay Palmer’s pathway into finance
is somewhat unconventional,
compared to many in this
industry, which perhaps reflects
the complex and specialist nature
of his current work. His career started in logistics,
distribution and retail. He entered lending
following a pivotal meeting with Paul Aitken,
which led to the creation of Borro, an early online
pawnbroking platform.
Taking the leap into financial services with a
background in logistics proved invaluable, helping
Palmer meet challenges that arose in terms of
securely transporting customers’ valuables as the
pawnbroking world made the shift into a digital
future. Palmer’s journey with Borro moved from
London to New York and back, until 2019 when
he reconnected with Aitken to acquire Suttons
& Robertsons, a pawnbroker founded in 1770,
specialising in luxury assets.
This acquisition would provide the bricks
and mortar foundation for Suros Capital, the
luxury asset short-term lender that launched in
November 2020, with the aim of sourcing and
supporting larger deals.
As the role of luxury asset lending evolves and
brokers increasingly look for new ways to support
their clients, The Intermediary sat down with
Palmer to understand the product, the assets, and
everything brokers need to know.
Brokering good business
While Suros Capital came from a consumer-facing
foundation, Palmer is clear that its success as a
lender comes from its work with intermediaries.
Palmer says: “There are limitations to what you
can achieve just through marketing and footfall.
We knew the bigger transactions would come from
the intermediary market.
“If you’re looking to borrow £100,000-plus you
don’t typically just go on Google and see what
turns up. Normally, you’ve got somebody that
looks after your financial affairs.
“The more sophisticated clients – it’s that
audience that we knew we needed to reach out to,
alongside the bricks and mortar stuff.”
The company was launched with a database
of around 2,000 intermediaries, enabling a fast
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The Intermediary | January 2026
launch and market penetration. Beyond this, it
engaged in an early strategy of marketing and
targeted networking to build up this all-important
broker base. Of course, launching in 2020 brought
with it its own set of unique market conditions.
Nevertheless, in the face of widespread shutdowns
due to the pandemic, pawnbroking was considered
an essential service. Meanwhile, Suros Capital
found itself on an upswing as lockdowns meant
some cohorts accumulated more savings, while
new lending use-cases emerged. For example,
Palmer points to entrepreneurs refinancing debt,
or capitalising on PPE-related opportunities to
turn the Covid-19 disruption to their advantage.
Palmer explains: “We even lent to a client on
their classic car collection, who was looking at
procuring PPE and selling it under contracts from
Government.”
Following on from this unique start, and despite
fluctuating demand since the pandemic, Suros
Capital has doubled its growth since early 2023.
No such thing as normal
It is difficult to define what counts as a ‘typical’
deal in a side of the market that is, by its nature, so
varied.
Commonly used asset categories might include
luxury cars, jewellery, watches, art and gold.
Recently, Palmer has also seen an increase in
lending based on wine. There are seemingly few
limits on what can be considered a viable asset,
although Suros has to be careful of where to draw
the line. Examples of this include luxury yachts,
which have in the past proven hard to guarantee
will remain in the same condition through the
term of the loan, and a high-performing racehorse,
which was not deemed a wise security, despite
being valuable.
Indeed, with a Damien Hirst already being kept
under tight security in the vault, one wonders
where the racehorse would even fit.
The client profile and loan uses are perhaps
easier to predict. Suros Capital uses these assets
to help borrowers act tactically in various ways,
often to support business concerns, pay tax bills,
make other investments, or make the most of
opportunistic purchases where timing is critical.
This can also be a helpful tool when it comes to
