Octopus Investments has provided a £20m (€24.8m) loan facility to online short-term loan supplier Borro. 

Established in 2008, Borro provides loans of between £1,000 and £1m against valuable assets such as watches, luxury cars, jewellery and antiques. 

Following Octopus's initial loan facility in 2011, Borro has expanded into the US and attracted a £16m investment led by US venture capital firm Canaan Partners. 

The £20m from Octopus will be used to fund Borro's UK loan book so that it can better serve its growing customer base. 

“There is significant growth potential within this area of specialist lending and Borro is rapidly asserting itself as the market leader in the personal asset-backed lending sector,” commented Hugh Costello, investment manager in the specialist finance team at Octopus.