Sydney brokers co-launch private lending company

The agreement allows Equilibria Private to leverage the private lender’s funding resources, which are backed by multiple warehouses, while retaining the ability to approve and write loans based on their own credit decisions.

The new venture, which has been in the planning stages for the past year and was officially launched in October, is a stand-alone business entity with Landahl, Daniel James, and Mathlin as directors.

Landahl will serve in a board and risk committee capacity, while maintaining his role as a broker and founder of his brokerage, Equilibria Finance.

James, who previously worked as a credit manager at private lender AltX, will run the new business day-to-day.

Mathlin, who has extensive debt advice and private credit experience, is also one of the directors of Equilibria Private. He continues to operate as head of broker at Equilibria Finance.

What kind of loans is it targeting?

Equilibria Private is focusing exclusively on short-term property-backed, non-coded business loans. The primary target clients are self-employed individuals and property investors.

While Equilibria Private said it can accommodate transactions from $250,000 up to $40 million, it expects most deals to fall in the $1 million–$10 million range.

The firm is currently working with brokers within the Equilibria Finance network and external brokers.

The lending approach is primarily asset-based, with key criteria focusing on:

• Security: Strong reliance on the quality of the security, using proper valuations and appropriate loan-to-value ratios (LVRs).

• Purpose: A legitimate business purpose, such as business lending, loans for residual stock, or development finance.

• Exit strategy: A clear and sensible plan for repaying the loan.

The maximum LVRs for business lending are 75 per cent (when backed with residential property) and 70 per cent for residual stock and development finance.

The new lender said it aims for competitive rates, with a goal to have a rate “with an eight in front of it” for most deals up to $7.5 million, generally targeting 8.99 per cent or below.

It said it is aware brokers want transparent pricing and will only charge one interest rate and one establishment fee, with no monthly or line fees.

Speaking to The Adviser about why he had wanted to launch his own lending company, Landahl said: “We saw a real opportunity and a need for brokers to be able to access a trusted partner in the private funding space,” noting the market’s current fragmented state.

“We know brokers are out there fishing in a big pond of private funders that they might not have a good, strong relationship with. But we’ve got good, strong connections with our funder, our aggregator and brokers, so we saw a really good opportunity to build a business that will leverage our network as well as our relationships with brokers.

“We’ve got a lot of depth and experience and strong networks, so we thought: ‘Why don’t we join forces and work together to build something ourselves?’ That way, brokers can come to us with those deals they can’t place with a major bank and know exactly who they’re working with.”

He said, being a broker himself, he knew that a key feature for referring brokers is the assurance of client retention and compensation. Landahl said brokers would maintain control of their client relationship, with Equilibria Private handling the transaction and never going direct to the client for future coded lending.

Landahl added that brokers would be paid a standard brokerage fee upon settlement, with no clawbacks.

He emphasised that he also knew brokers wanted certainty when using a lender and suggested the critical difference for their offering is the secure, strong funding line.

“If we issue a formal approval, that means the money’s there," he noted.

“It’s really emphasising that point, that we’re not just a private lender that is going to look at a handful of deals until our investors tap out. We’ve got a robust ability to fund deals."

James agreed and stated: “We started Equilibria Private as we saw a gap in the market for a lender to provide transparent, fast decisions for deals that may not fit the bank’s criteria. We launched the business to give brokers and borrowers absolute clarity on what we can do, how we make decisions, and how fast we can move.

“We are working with a Sydney-based wholesale funder which gives us stable capital, fast access to funds, and the flexibility to structure deals without delays.”

The Equilibria Private director continued: “Our offer to brokers is simple: fast answers, and direct access to the decision-makers. We give brokers certainty early so they can confidently guide their clients and get deals settled without delay.

“Between the three of us, we bring deep experience in private credit and commercial lending. I’ve built my career in commercial finance and deal structuring with a legal and credit background. Anthony founded a successful broker business and brings deep lending expertise, while Doug adds extensive private lending experience.”

Equilibria Private said it expects to be funding $50 million to $100 million a year in the short term, prioritising building a strong foundation around operations and delivery.

[Related: Equilibria Finance appoints new member to leadership team]