MyFarm is a big user of the Syndex toolbox - gaining power and support for sustained growth.
Background
MyFarm began in 1990 with an innovative offering for investors wanting greater exposure to the hard to invest primary sector. MyFarm’s initial offering was proportional ownership derived from the purchase and syndication of handpicked dairy farms and in 2015 the company expanded to a broader range of investment opportunities in rural land assets in horticulture, viticulture and their associated infrastructure.
MyFarm is a trusted Issuer with a reputation for offering attractive ROI from meticulously chosen businesses and land-based horticultural assets.
Challenges
In 2015 MyFarm was looking to solve two key challenges. The first was liquidity for their investors. The company needed to better accommodate investors accustomed to the ease and liquidity of investments in the public markets to consider their offers.
The second challenge was the growing number of spreadsheets and manual processes involved in every issue. MyFarm needed smarter systems and access to more investors in order to realise the forecast growth. The need to streamline all aspects of investor relations was clear and digitisation was the only solution.
Aware of reaching the full extent of its own investment management capabilities the company began to look for a software solution. Outsourcing was discounted as they wanted to maintain control of the processes, data, and ultimately, the customer relationship.
Taking on the tools of our trade
MyFarm partnered with Syndex in 2016 to provide the competitive differentiation they coveted by offering liquidity to their investors. With access to the Syndex secondary market, MyFarm investors are able to trade their units simply and efficiently.
“Syndex is a win-win relationship. It helps address one of those frown lines people get when looking at an investment proposition. When you get that tough question, ‘How do I get out?’, we’ve got an answer.” Andrew Watters, CEO.
In opting for the full-service investment management system MyFarm’s engine room has been turbo-charged. The platform offers digital remedies to improve the investor experience and streamline administrative demands. Customer relationships are maintained with a communication system that records interactions and facilitates quick and easy bulk personalised emailing.
“An element that brought significant change to our operations was the move to online investor applications via Syndex rather than paper forms. This has taken away a barrier to investors applying, and also allowed us to fill new schemes with short settlement deadlines”, says Grant Payton, Head of Sales.
Within the investor onboarding process, MyFarm maintain compliance with the regulatory obligations of AML and the FMCA through electronic identification verification, bioverification and wholesale certification functionality - all automated online processes.
MyFarm’s ability to scale up is a huge part of the company’s growth story. In 2015 MyFarm conducted one new issue on Syndex, in 2016 two new issues and in 2020 12 new issues. While the upward curve of increased issues and income is steep, the administrative demands maintain a low rise. This keeps costs low, without compromising customer service.
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