TSL Express Daily News

On-Chain Investment Advisor Revolutionizes Private Credit User Experience and Accessibility

San Francisco – March 12, 2024 – Heron Finance, an SEC-registered investment advisor (“RIA”), announced it has completed its rollout, and has begun accepting investments to build automated private credit portfolios via digital wallets and, for the first time, standard bank accounts.

Heron Finance is the first and only automated investing platform offering accredited US investors access to the rapidly growing private credit asset class. Its launch has coincided with a private credit boom, as both macroeconomic and regulatory tailwinds are currently benefiting the sector. Morgan Stanley predicts that the size of the private credit market will grow from $1.4 trillion in 2023 to $2.3 trillion in 2027.¹

Through Heron Finance, clients choose a private credit strategy based on their risk tolerance and investment objectives, then begin investing. The platform builds each client a diversified portfolio of private credit investments to small and medium sized businesses and automatically rebalances their portfolio over time. The investments typically pay interest monthly, which are automatically reinvested, and can create a steady stream of payments back to clients.

Clients can fund their accounts via Coinbase crypto wallets and and now standard bank accounts, and the user experience is straightforward and intuitive, akin to banking or shopping online.

“Heron Finance uses the benefits of the blockchain infrastructure to provide a better way to access private credit, and if you are an accredited investor, all you need is a standard bank account to begin investing,” said Blake West, co-founder and CTO of Warbler Labs, the parent company of Heron Finance. “In addition to compliance and due diligence, we are focused on user experience and accessibility, and we think it is a game-changer that clients on Heron Finance do not need to provide crypto or be experts in blockchain technology.”

Heron Finance is built on Goldfinch, an open-source lending protocol that has been used to originate over $110M of loans in 20 countries since its founding three years ago. The Goldfinch protocol leverages blockchain technology to create a global, interoperable ecosystem of loans from many independent lenders, all using the same decentralized infrastructure. 

“Private credit has been shown to have an attractive risk/return profile compared to stocks,” said Mike Sall, co-founder and CEO. “Heron Finance is a one-of-a-kind product using blockchain to reduce the cost of transferring money and to increase transparency for clients. The platform offers other advantages like automated investment strategies and multiple risk-tiers without the long lock-up periods of traditional credit funds. Ultimately though, it provides access to an exciting asset class once out of reach for those outside the institutional and the ultra-high net worth arenas.”

1. https://www.morganstanley.com/ideas/private-credit-outlook-considerations

About Heron Finance

As the first robo-advisor for private credit, Heron Finance invests in loans to small and medium sized businesses in the US and globally, then allows accredited investors to participate in those deals. Investors receive steady monthly payments of interest, which they can choose to reinvest on the platform or transfer to another institution. Heron Finance automatically allocates and rebalances investor portfolios, depending on their risk preferences. Their experienced in-house credit team sources and monitors the risk of all deals to maximize returns and reduce risks. Only the most qualified businesses are approved by its credit team. Heron Finance was built by the a16z-backed Warbler Labs team, which also supports the development of the Goldfinch protocol. 

Disclosures

Warbler Advisory, Inc., d.b.a. Heron Finance, is an SEC-registered investment advisor (RIA). Such registration should in no way imply that the SEC has endorsed the entities, products or services discussed herein. Private credit investments are subject to credit, liquidity, and interest rate risk among other types of risk. No communication by Heron Finance or any of its affiliates through this press release should be construed or is intended to be investment, tax, financial, accounting, or legal advice.