Member Spotlight — Rampart Capital is unlocking private wealth without forcing founders to sell

Australia’s private technology ecosystem has created significant wealth for founders, executives and early employees. However, much of that wealth remains locked in private company shares and other assets that cannot easily be converted into cash.

Rampart Capital was established to address this gap.

The specialist Australian lender helps founders, executives and high net worth individuals access liquidity against private company shares and other alternative assets, without requiring them to sell their holdings and relinquish the potential future upside.

Solving the private market liquidity problem

Companies are remaining private for longer, extending the period between early value creation and a founder or shareholder’s opportunity to realise that value.

For many people within Australia’s technology sector, this creates an unusual financial position. They may hold a valuable stake in a growing company but have limited access to liquid capital for diversification, property purchases, new investments or their next business venture.

Traditional lenders are generally structured to assess regular income, property and liquid investment portfolios. Private company shares can be more difficult to accommodate because they are illiquid, their value is not continuously observable and the pathway to an exit is less certain.

Rampart takes a different approach. It considers the borrower’s broader asset position and creates bespoke facilities secured against assets including private company shares, private market fund interests, listed equities, digital assets and other alternative investments.

An investment led approach

Rampart was founded by Trevor Abromowitz following a career spanning asset management, institutional investment and credit. Through that experience, he saw that sophisticated investors could access liquidity against a broad range of assets, while founders and private company shareholders often had far fewer options.

That insight shaped Rampart’s approach: combining disciplined credit assessment with a practical understanding of private assets and the people who hold them.

Expanding access to private market liquidity

Securities backed lending is well established in public markets, but lending against private company equity remains a relatively new concept in Australia. Many potential borrowers do not realise that their shares may be able to support a loan, or assume that selling is their only option for obtaining liquidity.

Building the company therefore involves more than providing capital. It also requires educating founders, advisers and investors about how private asset lending works, when it may be appropriate and the risks and responsibilities involved.

Trust is equally important. Borrowers are often pledging an asset that represents years of work and a significant proportion of their personal wealth. Rampart’s focus is on providing clear, tailored solutions supported by rigorous assessment and direct conversations with each client.

Building infrastructure for Australia’s innovation economy

Rampart plans to continue expanding its private market liquidity offering across Australia, with a particular focus on founders, executives and early shareholders in established private technology companies.

As Australia’s private markets mature, the company expects increased demand for alternatives to a complete or partial equity sale. Longer periods between liquidity events, growing awareness of concentration risk and the ambitions of experienced founders to build or back their next venture are all contributing to this need.

For Rampart, the opportunity is to build a new piece of financial infrastructure for Australia’s innovation economy: one that recognises the value created in private companies and gives the people behind them greater choice over when, and whether, they sell.

Learn more about Rampart Capital: https://www.rampartcapital.com.au/