Type Privately owned Founder Gregory Baker | Industry Alternative finance Website introcrowd.com | |
Headquarters 1 Fore Street, London, United Kingdom Key people Gregory Baker, Chris Merriman | ||
Intro Crowd was launched by Gregory Baker in April 2016. Intro Crowd is a crowdfunding platform that allows investors to collectively fund the acquisition of strategically selected land.
Contents
The concept was driven by a demand for new housing in the UK. Intro Crowd’s first project is a land development at Cam, near Dursley in Gloucestershire. Intro Crowd has funded this project in its entirety.
Model
Intro Crowd identifies strategic land that is near to existing settlements and experiencing high growth in population.
Strategic land is typically on the edges of towns and villages. The sites are listed on the Intro Crowd platform with site plans, a report, and indication of future land value from chartered surveyors.
Intro Crowd then sets up an investment company in order to purchase each plot of land, in which investors then buy shares. Shares can be bought for a minimum of £1,500.
Once the land has been fully funded via the crowdfunding platform, Intro Crowd seek planning permission for the land, which can take anywhere from three to ten years. If planning permission is obtained, the land is then sold to a housing developer and the profits are distributed between the investors.
Key People
Gregory Baker is the CEO and Founder of Intro Crowd. He is also the director and founder of Hermex FX, the City foreign exchange firm.
Chris Merriman is a fellow of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors and is in charge of the planning aspect of Intro Crowd.
Regulation
Intro Crowd is an appointed representative of Sapia Partners LLP, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).