Neptune Financial

Neptune Financial (NepFin) was established in 2016 by co-founders Albert Periu and Thomas Meister, positioning itself as a debt capital and data provider for the lower middle market. The company was headquartered in San Francisco, California, and focused on providing a technology-enabled platform for commercial lending.

The founding team brought together significant experience in finance and capital markets. Albert Periu, who served as Co-Founder and CEO, had a background that included roles at FBR & Co., Deutsche Bank, and Merrill Lynch. Prior to NepFin, he was the Global Co-Head of Capital Markets for the online lender Funding Circle. This experience in both traditional investment banking and the fintech lending space was central to NepFin's strategy. Thomas Meister, the Co-Founder, COO & General Counsel, complemented this with his operational and legal expertise.

NepFin's business model centered on providing senior secured term loans to small and mid-sized businesses. The company catered to a diverse client base across sectors such as business services, financial services, consumer, healthcare, and technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT). It offered cash flow lending and asset-based lending for various purposes, including acquisition financing, recapitalizations, refinancings, and growth capital. The target market consisted of companies with annual revenues between $10 million and $100 million, seeking loans from $500,000 to $60 million.

In August 2021, NepFin was acquired by Zilch, a London-based 'buy now, pay later' (BNPL) fintech company. The acquisition was a strategic move for Zilch to facilitate its expansion into the U.S. market, leveraging NepFin's technology, regulatory infrastructure, and California Finance Lenders License. Following the acquisition, Albert Periu became the CEO of Zilch USA, and Thomas Meister took on the roles of COO & General Counsel for the U.S. operations, continuing to apply their expertise in building out fintech lending businesses.

Keywords: debt capital provider, lower middle market, commercial lending, fintech, small business loans, SME financing, acquisition financing, recapitalization, senior secured term loans, cash flow lending, asset-based lending, corporate finance, direct lending, growth capital, financial services, Albert Periu, Thomas Meister, Zilch acquisition, business services lending, healthcare financing, TMT financing