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NY Firm to Launch Diamond Industry Lending
Aug 17, 2016 3:04 AM
By Rapaport News
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RAPAPORT... The midstream diamond and jewelry industry is set to gain
access to more than a billion dollars in loans from a New York-based lender that sees a “dire need” for funding in the sector.
Excelsior Capital Ventures will start engaging
with borrowers with an aim to narrow the industry’s $6 billion liquidity
shortfall by at least $1.5 billion by 2019, the company said. Up to $20 million
can be lent to a creditworthy client against diamond and precious-metal
inventories as collateral. The firm will start lending on October 3.
The firm plans to co-lend with major banks
that are already in the business of providing financing to the industry and
said it is in talks with all of them to tap into their experience.
"We are in an environment where the diamond and jewelry
industry is experiencing a significant contraction in lending,” said Nehal
Modi, Excelsior’s founder and the former head of Indian jeweler Gitanjali’s
U.S. operations. “There is a dire need for new capital and greater liquidity in
order to expand the companies and industry at large.”
Excelsior was founded in 2015 by Modi and Jon Mitchell,
former president and COO of Aston Luxury Group, as well as David Barr,
ex-chairman of Samuels Jewelers. The company aims to provide working capital
loans to midstream borrowers, as well other value-added services.
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Tags:
Banks, financial, lending, new york, Rapaport News, venture capital
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