A rare piece of cricket history – Sir Donald Bradman’s 1947–48 Baggy Green cap – has been used as collateral for a $500,000 business loan.
Non-bank lender Asset Based Lending (ABL) has revealed that it has advanced the owner of Sir Donald (Don) Bradman’s 1947–48 ‘Baggy Green’ cricket cap half a million dollars, using the cap as security for a business loan.
According to ABL, the loan was needed by the owner (undisclosed) to act on a time-sensitive business opportunity that traditional lenders could not accommodate during the holiday break.
A historic cap
Australian cricketer Bradman personally gifted the 1947–48 Baggy Green to Indian Test cricketer Ranga Sohoni during India’s first ever tour of Australia as an independent nation.
Captained by Lala Amarnath, the Indian team took on a formidable Australian side as international cricket resumed after World War II.
The Australian team was led by Bradman in his final home Test Series, in which Australia dominated (winning four matches with one drawn).
The cap has remained in the Sohoni family for more than 75 years, but is now going up for auction.
At the time of writing (5 January), the top bid for the cap - which is being auctioned by Lloyds Auctions (who also acted as valuers for the loan) on Australia Day (26 January) - was at $435,000. The current auction record for a Baggy Green is $1,007,500, paid for Shane Warne’s cap during the 2019–20 bushfire appeal.
ABL said it was pleased it was able to offer a loan to the owner of the cap during the holidays, noting the historic provenance of the asset.
However, the lender said that while the security for the loan was unusual, it reflects the non-bank’s reason for being: to loan to businesses against a multitude of assets.
ABL managing director Steve Heavey commented: “The asset happened to be Bradman’s Baggy Green, and it happened to be Christmas, but the situation is the same we see business owners face every week. Business owner, valuable asset, needs capital yesterday. The banks take weeks. And for most of these deals, they wouldn’t even entertain them. We’re different.
“It might be the Christmas break, it might be a Tuesday in June. The need is urgent, the opportunity won’t wait, and the banks can’t get there in time.
“Contracts need securing. Suppliers want paying. A competitor’s about to swoop. Credit committees don’t move at that speed.”
ABL provides short-term loans secured against assets rather than financial statements. The new private lender launched last year to allow businesses to quickly unlock capital by borrowing against assets such as vehicles, inventory, or luxury items, with funds typically available within 24 hours. Loans range from $20,000–$1 million for one- to three-month terms, and if not repaid, the assets are auctioned with any surplus returned to the client.
[Related: New asset-based lender launches for SMEs]
