MARK JOHNSON · DIRECTOR
Structure is what makes capital credible.
I am a Director of BDM Wealth Management. We are an introduction business: we connect businesses raising capital with investors looking for structured opportunities, across bonds, loan notes, equity and IPOs, and SEIS/EIS.
Most of the work happens before anyone is introduced to anyone. A raise succeeds or fails on whether the instrument fits the business, whether the documentation answers the questions an investor will actually ask, and whether the timeline was set before outreach began rather than during it. That is the part founders tend to skip, and it is the part that costs them.
We work with clients worldwide, on a mandate basis, and we are deliberately narrow: four instruments, done properly, rather than a menu.
Background
I started in the City of London in 2006, raising capital through bonds and loan notes. I spent the decade that followed based in Canary Wharf, working on substantial projects across corporate finance.
Since then I have taken three companies public through LimeTree IPO. I launched AlphaBit Fund, a regulated cryptocurrency fund in the Cayman Islands. In digital payments I funded TAP Global, the Gibraltar-based business now listed on the London Stock Exchange. Across the wider sector I have been involved in more than forty early-stage crypto ventures.
My specialism is the debt side: loan notes and bonds, and the structuring work that sits underneath them. A large part of my career has been spent restructuring and refinancing companies, and taking them public to clear debt off the balance sheet. That is the technical end of capital raising, and it is where most raises are won or lost.
What this site is for
This is where I write down the things I end up explaining in meetings. How the four instruments actually differ. What investors read first in a pack, and what makes them stop reading. Where raises stall, and why the reason is usually structural rather than bad luck.
It is written for founders and directors preparing to raise, and for investors who want to understand what they are being shown. No deal promotion, no opportunities listed here, and nothing that constitutes advice. If you want to discuss a specific raise, that conversation belongs at bdm.llc.
What we do
- Bonds — fixed return, fixed term, usually secured. For businesses that can service debt and want to keep their equity.
- Loan notes — flexible debt for a specific, time-boxed need. Convertible where the valuation argument is better had later.
- Equity and IPOs — permanent capital and shared risk, for businesses whose outcome is genuinely uncertain.
- SEIS/EIS — UK tax-advantaged early-stage investment, where the company qualifies and can keep qualifying.
BDM Wealth Management is an introduction business and is not regulated. Nothing on this site is financial, tax or legal advice, and nothing here is an offer or invitation to invest. Capital is at risk and you may get back less than you invest. For high-net-worth and sophisticated investors only. Take independent professional advice before making any investment decision.