Oscars, Warhols and whisky: inside the weird world of luxury asset lending

"Ray Palmer, director at Suros, told Business Matters the firm's loan book includes some of the strangest transactions in the market. Among them: a £6m loan against 21,000 bottles of wine stored in a Second World War bunker, a £60,000 Macallan whisky bottle, and even an Academy Award. Other approaches - ultimately rejected - included racehorses, Fabergé eggs and a bizarre offer of 50 tonnes of dirt supposedly containing 2% gold."

"But the glamour comes with unique challenges. Unlike property, where value and authenticity are straightforward, luxury asset lending requires rigorous checks. "We have to prove that a Rolex is a genuine Rolex or that a wine can be traced back to the vineyard," Palmer explained. "Forgery in the art world is rife, so we use everything from auction history to x-rays and UV light to authenticate items.""

"Suros relies on a network of auction-house professionals and maintains its own £30m cash vault with £300m of insured jewellery inside to secure loans. Despite the eccentric assets, Palmer says the principles remain the same: speed, valuation, and risk control. The firm believes lending against art could grow as sellers hold onto pieces during a market downturn, using them as security instead of offloading at low prices. Still, managing expectations remains tough. "Most people overestimate what their assets are worth," Palmer admitted."

Suros Capital lends against high-value possessions such as Warhol paintings, Rolex watches, gold bullion, Banksy prints, Oscars, whisky and wine. The loan book includes a £6m advance against 21,000 bottles of wine stored in a Second World War bunker, a £60,000 Macallan bottle and an Academy Award. Proposed assets such as racehorses, Fabergé eggs and 50 tonnes of dirt claimed to contain 2% gold were rejected. Luxury asset lending demands rigorous provenance and authenticity checks using auction histories, x-rays and UV light. A £30m cash vault and £300m of insured jewellery back loans. Speed, valuation and risk control remain central. Many borrowers overestimate asset values.

Read at Business Matters