Invest alongside me in the deals that never reach the open market
I've invested in over 100 businesses and funded more than £1bn across 750 more. Off Market is my private investor club. I source every deal, carry out the due diligence, negotiate the terms and invest my own money in each one. Members then have the opportunity to invest alongside me, in businesses most private investors would never get access to on their own.
The problem with finding great private investments
The best private investments, in businesses and property, rarely reach the open market.
The best deals are gone before they reach the market
A founder with a strong business raises from people they already know, and from the people those people know. By the time a deal is being touted around on a crowdfunding platform or at a pitch event, the best opportunities have already gone.
Hundreds of pitches, little worth backing
So most private investors end up choosing from whatever is left, reading hundreds of pitches through angel networks, online platforms and their own networks, struggling to find something worth backing.
You're left doing the due diligence alone
Even when something looks promising, the checks fall on you: the accounts, the contracts, the model and the founder. It takes time and it needs expert domain knowledge.
The people selling the deal rarely invest in it
Platforms and brokers are paid when the raise closes, whether the business succeeds or not. Very few of them put their own money in alongside yours.
The answer: Off Market
I created Off Market to solve this problem. A private club, connecting a vetted group of no more than 100 investors with exclusive opportunities, built around my deal flow.
The deals come from my own network, built over 25 years of investing, lending and raising capital, and the club sees them before they reach the open market. I source the deal, conduct the detailed due diligence, turn most opportunities down, and only bring the club what I'm investing in myself. As well as myself and my team, members also get each other: a pool of like-minded investors to compare notes with and invest alongside.
Investors, never more
A vetted group, capped at 100 members.
Deals a month
On average, each one sourced, checked and negotiated by me before the club sees it.
Every deal has my money in it
I only bring the club what I'm investing in myself.
Who is Matt Haycox?
Over 25 years I've started and run over 30 businesses, raised over £250m for my own companies and over £50m for the businesses I advise, and had an 8-figure exit.
I've also spent most of those years deciding who gets money. I've funded over £1bn across more than 750 businesses and invested in over 100. I've also raised capital from investors in over 50 countries.
I've built and backed businesses in hospitality and leisure, from bars and clubs to a group of over 65 pubs, as well as tech, gaming, property development, retail, lending and media, across the UK, the US, the UAE and Indonesia.
So every deal that members see has been sourced and been subjected to extensive diligence by someone who has been the operator asking for money, the lender deciding whether to lend it and the investor writing the cheque.
Few investors have sat in all three seats.
Lender
A lender looks at the security and how the loan gets repaid.
Investor
An investor looks at the valuation and the exit.
Operator
As an operator, I also look at whether the founder can deliver the plan: whether they can sell, market, hire, negotiate and manage cash well enough to hit the numbers, because I've had to do every one of those jobs myself.
I'm still an operator today, building and running businesses right now, so my view of what it takes to deliver a plan comes from this year's market.
Business is pattern recognition, and over 25 years I've read thousands of pitch decks and seen businesses of every size and sector from the inside, as an owner, a lender and an investor. I've seen most of the situations a company can get into, and how each one tends to end. That's what lets me tell early whether a founder is likely to deliver, and what will go wrong if they don't.
Where the deals come from
Great deals start with great sourcing. The best opportunities go first to the people that founders, bankers and advisers already know and trust, and after 25 years in this market, that's me. They reach me through my network and the work I already do.
My network
Over 25 years I've built a network of bankers, corporate finance advisers, founders and entrepreneurs, who bring deals to me as I bring deals to them. I'm a member of other investor clubs and networks, and I travel extensively, so opportunities reach me from all over the world.
My podcasts
I host 2 global podcasts, No Bollocks and Stripping Off, with 200,000 downloads a month between them. Guests and listeners bring me opportunities from every corner of the world.
Founders I'm helping to raise
Every month I work with a small number of founders on their raise. By the time one of them reaches the club, I've been through the business, the numbers and the pitch deck myself.
My venture studio
Companies I've co-founded and helped build, raising their next round once they have customers and revenue.
My own deals
Businesses, bonds and property I'm buying, building or funding myself.
What kind of deals
One of the basic rules of successful investing is to only invest in what you know and understand. Every deal in the club is in a sector I know inside out, because I've built, run and funded businesses in it myself: hospitality and leisure, tech, gaming, property, retail and lending. Every deal also uses a structure I've worked with many times, as a borrower, a lender and an investor.
Equity
Shares in companies raising capital to grow. The return comes when that value is realised, through a sale, a later funding round or a stake bought out.
Debt
Loan notes, bonds and secured lending that pay a fixed rate of interest, with the money repaid at the end of the term. Most are secured against property or other assets.
Property and real assets
Developments and finished buildings in the UK, Dubai and Bali, for investors who want security and yield.
The same rule applies to where deals are structured. Most deals are in the UK and the UAE, but wherever the business operates, the investment is always structured through a company in a jurisdiction I know well, with an established and well-tested legal system, such as the UK, Singapore or Hong Kong. Most use English law, and every structure is set up with tax efficiency in mind.
Why I share these deals
I see far more great deals than I have the capital to do on my own. To do them, I need a pool of like-minded investors who are ready to act when a deal comes in. That's what Off Market is.
With the members behind me, I can fund a whole raise rather than part of it, commit faster than other investors and negotiate stronger terms. Founders with great deals want an investor who can do that, and my own money still goes into every one.
What you get on every deal
Every deal reaches you with everything I used to make my own decision, laid out so you can make yours quickly.
My investment case
A detailed written memo in the same format every time, so you can compare one deal with the next:
- 01What the business does and why it wins
- 02The numbers: revenue, margins, EBITDA, cash and burn rate
- 03The raise and the terms: how much, at what valuation or rate, and what security sits behind it
- 04Why I'm investing, the risks, how each one is mitigated, and why I believe the price is right
Matt HaycoxA video breakdown from me
I walk you through the deal on camera: why it made it through when most don't, what excites me about it, the risks and how we've mitigated them, and what I'll be watching once the money is in.
The tough questions
Every hard question I put to the founders, and how they answered it. You see what I pushed on, what stood up to scrutiny and anything I made them change before the deal reached the club.
The due diligence and the data room
A summary of my due diligence, area by area, and what it found, with the full data room behind it: the accounts, the contracts, the financial model and the legal documents, so you can do your own.
A live call with the founders
Every deal gets its own live call with me and the founders before the deadline. Members put their questions to the founders directly, and the recording goes into the community for anyone who can't make it.
After the deal closes
After the money goes in, the founders keep working with me, my team and my network. Every club deal reports back each quarter, so you see how the deals you backed are doing, and the ones you didn't.
Inside the club
Deal nights
Deal nights run live once a month. Founders pitch for 10 minutes each, I question them, then members ask their own questions. Every deal night is recorded so you can watch any you miss.
The members
Every member is a vetted private investor with money to put to work, and the community is where you get to know each other. The members' directory shows each member's sectors and usual amount per deal, so you can find people to invest alongside and compare notes with.
The courses
Between deals, members learn how I read and do deals, in courses built from the deals I've done.
How investing works
Every deal is optional, and nobody is ever committed to investing in something they don't want to. The club is built for active investors, though, so I expect members to back the deals that suit them.
A typical deal runs like this.
The memo
You receive my investment case, the video breakdown and the data room, and you have a week to go through it and do your own due diligence.
The founder call
At the start of the second week there's a live call with me and the founders. Any member can join and put their questions directly, and the recording goes into the community. Anything the call raises that needs more information is answered during that week.
Commitments
Members who want in confirm how much they're investing within 7 days.
Funding
Once the deal is confirmed as going ahead, committed members pay their funds within 3 working days.
Direct or through a syndicate
Each deal is structured in one of two ways, depending on the deal:
Direct
You invest straight into the company, on the company's own documents.
Through a syndicate
Where a deal has a high minimum ticket, or the founder wants one shareholder on the cap table instead of dozens, members' money goes into one company set up for that deal, known as a special purpose vehicle (SPV). It invests as a single shareholder, much like a feeder fund, and a specialist syndicate platform runs the investor checks, the money and the reporting.
Typical minimum per deal
The minimum investment is set deal by deal and stated in the memo, and typically starts at £25,000.
Why the deadlines matter
I get early access to deals, and often better terms, because founders know the club moves quickly and won't mess them around. That only works if every member does the same. You get everything you need to make a decision, so a no is always fine. A yes has to be confirmed within the timeline, and the money has to follow within 3 working days. If commitments drift or funds arrive late, founders stop bringing their best deals to the club, and every member loses out.
Off Market is for people who invest. Members are expected to put at least £50,000 a year into the deals they choose. You don't have to back any single deal, but any member who hasn't invested in a deal for 12 months loses their place to the next person on the waiting list.
Every member pays a $1,000 acceptance fee within 24 hours of being accepted, and gets all of it back on their first investment. The fee is there as a token gesture to sort serious investors from window shoppers.
Members are also expected to stick to the timeline on every deal: a quick no is always fine, but a yes has to be confirmed on time and paid within the required timescales.
Who it's for
Off Market is for private investors with money to put into private companies, especially if:
You've sold a business and have capital to deploy, or you run a business that produces more cash than it needs
You earn well and want direct stakes in businesses as well as the stock market and property
You already invest in property and want deals in operating businesses too
You run or advise a family office
You've invested privately before and want strong deals coming to you instead of hunting for them
How to join
Fill in the application
A short form: what you've invested in before, your usual amount per deal, what you expect to invest over the next 12 months, and the sectors you like. You also confirm you're a high-net-worth, accredited or sophisticated investor, which is the standard requirement for private deals.
A short call with me or my team
It's a screening call, not a sales call. We confirm you've invested privately before, or that you have the money ready to invest, and answer your questions about the club.
Join as a member
Once you're accepted, you have 24 hours to pay the $1,000 acceptance fee. If it isn't paid in time, the place goes to the next person on the waiting list. Once it's paid, you get the members' community, the open deals, the recordings and the courses, and the fee comes back to you in full on your first investment.
Off Market is capped at 100 members. Once it's full, applications go to a waiting list, and a place opens only when a member leaves or loses it.
Questions investors ask before applying
Is there a fee to join?
There's a $1,000 acceptance fee, payable within 24 hours of being accepted, and you get all of it back when you make your first investment, so members who invest pay nothing to be in the club. The fee is simply there to sort serious investors from tyre kickers.
How do you make money?
I make my money from the deals, where the company raising pays me an arrangement fee. On deals structured through an SPV, I may also take a share of the profit, known as carry or a performance fee, once members have had their money back. Every fee on a deal is set out in its memo before you invest, so you can work out your net return before you commit.
Do I have to invest in every deal?
No, you don't have to invest in any particular deal. Every deal is optional, and the £50,000 a year is spread across the deals you pick.
Can I ask my own questions and do my own due diligence?
Yes. Every deal comes with the full data room, so you can do your own due diligence, and you put your questions to the founders directly on the live founder call. Anything the call raises that needs more information is answered before commitments are due.
What's the minimum per deal?
Each deal sets its own minimum, typically starting at £25,000.
Where do I need to be based?
You can be based anywhere, and I've raised capital from investors in over 50 countries.
Can I invest through a company, trust or pension?
Normally, yes. The deal itself will usually allow it, so the question is whether your trust or pension scheme does, and that's for your trustees or pension provider to confirm.
Do any deals qualify for tax relief?
It depends on the deal and where it is. UK equity deals typically qualify for SEIS or EIS tax relief.
How are returns paid?
Each memo sets out how and when the returns come: interest and repayment on a loan note or bond, or, for equity, a sale of the company, a later funding round or a stake bought out.
How long will my money be tied up?
It depends on the type of deal. Debt deals have their term set from the outset and are typically short, around 12 to 18 months. Equity is illiquid and has no fixed timeline, but I typically look to exit within 3 to 5 years. Each memo sets out the expected timeline, and on every deal, I'm committed to finding the right exit at the right time as my own capital is in there too.
What happens if a deal goes wrong?
Every memo sets out the risks and how each one is mitigated before you invest, and every deal is structured to reduce risk as far as possible. Debt deals are usually secured against property or other assets, so there's a route to recovering the capital, though recovery would then typically take longer than the original term. Equity in young, illiquid businesses is high-risk investing, and investors need to be comfortable with that from the outset. If anything deviates from the plan, the investors in that deal are told straight away, kept informed throughout, and typically get a vote on what happens next.
What if a deal is oversubscribed?
Allocations are agreed with the founders. Usually everyone is scaled back pro rata, unless the founder wants a particular investor on board for what they bring beyond the money.
What happens after I apply to join?
If it looks like a fit, you can book a short call with my team straight away.
I'm a founder. Can I join to meet investors?
No, Off Market is for investors only. Founders are presented to the club once I've worked on their raise.
P.S. Every deal in Off Market is one I'm investing in myself, and members get to invest alongside me before anyone else does. If you put at least £50,000 a year into private companies, apply for one of the 100 places.