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David Newman is no stranger to the startup grind. A seasoned fintech entrepreneur and the CEO of Firenze, he’s on a mission to reshape lending options for wealth managers and financial planners.
Headquartered in Manchester, Firenze offers an embedded finance platform that enables wealth managers, brokers, and investment platforms to offer Lombard loans starting from £25,000. The idea was born from David’s time in private banking at UBS and Barclays, where he saw first-hand how Lombard lending could be reimagined for a broader, mass affluent audience.
Firenze recently raised a £2.5 million seed round, led by Outward VC with participation from top-tier early-stage fintech backers Form Ventures and Portfolio Ventures.
Alongside his current venture, David is also an exited founder—having sold his previous company, Delio—and an active angel investor. In 2024, he joined the Baltic Ventures syndicate, lending his experience to the next generation of founders.
We sat down with him to unpack lessons from his latest fundraise—and gather insights for other entrepreneurs navigating the early-stage startup journey.
Even with years of experience in fintech, David emphasizes that surprises are inevitable—and often more complex than anticipated.
“On the face of it what we do is simple—we lend money secured against investment portfolios,” he explains.
“But under the hood there are so many moving parts (far more than expected) and changing one has such ramifications for the others.”
Among the biggest challenges? Regulatory complexity.
David highlights the “myriad” of legal, compliance, and regulatory considerations that shape—and often complicate—the business model.
“How they weave through, and drive interdependency between, the different relationships we have with borrowers, wealth management partners, custodians and funders is a challenge I didn’t really know I was getting into,” he says.
What separates a good founding team from a great one? Investors often ask whether early-stage teams have the right mix of skills, grit, and vision to go the distance.
For David, it starts with a genuine passion for the problem.
“Would they be prepared to go work for someone else just to see it solved? If so, they are going to give everything they can to make it succeed,” he says.
He also stresses the importance of charisma and conviction.
“Can they inspire people? Are they going to be able to close that sale by the will of their vision alone? Are they going to be able to win over that rockstar hire long before they had any right to?”
But perhaps most importantly, he champions transparency.
“It’s going to be a tough ride and if they can’t talk about the challenges in a grown up way then they will fail.”
Many founders wait until they’re running low on cash to start engaging with investors—but David says that’s a mistake.
He urges founders to build relationships early and intentionally.
“Get to know a small focused group of investors that are the best fit,” he advises. “Telling people in advance what you are going to do by when and then doing it is the easiest way to raise capital.”
Drawing from his dual perspective as both founder and investor, David warns against going silent after the deal is done.
“Be super open and transparent about the risks, challenges, assumptions, dependencies and investors will respect the way you think about the business.”
Once the funding hits the bank, many startups shift into rapid spending mode—but David suggests a more measured approach.
“Sometimes when the money lands, every £2,000 spent starts to feel acceptable, a new hire comes in too early and your balance sheet starts looking all over the place,” he says.
His advice? Slow down.
“Take your time, hit the next milestone and then spend!”