Splend is the leading provider of ride share vehicles in Australia and the UK. During the lockdowns associated with COVID, Splend earnings took a significant hit as drivers returned vehicles. Coming out of COVID, driver earnings were above pre-COVID levels as people’s transport habits shifted away from public transport. Demand for Splend vehicles also increased significantly due to rising unemployment and underemployment. Neu Capital was able to source a A$40m facility from a US based financier to refinance existing lenders and provide scope for significant growth.
Neu Capital undertook a detailed analysis of the unit economics of an individual vehicle to look through the short term profitability issues associated with the recent under utilisation. We were also able to setup a structure that provided an incoming financier with controls over the cashflows whilst still providing the borrower flexibility by linking the facility to a borrowing base that allowed for the purchase and disposal of vehicles.
