Beatles, Novello and Moore treasures used to borrow cash

The current austerity environment is forcing many people to borrow money by putting up their own treasured personal items as collateral according to online lender, Borro.

A tank, two Ivor Novello music awards, an 18th century bible, a range of Beatles memorabilia and a Henry Moore sculpture have been amongst the items used to raise funds says Borro’s Chief Executive, Paul Aitken: "It is fascinating to see the wide variety of customers and assets coming to us at the moment. People are undoubtedly being hit by these tough economic times and are looking at different ways to raise the money to help them pay for those unexpected financial situations.

"Many people are realising that they have some very interesting and valuable personal items sitting in their homes or in storage."

Roger Southam, Chairman of property management company Chainbow, said: “Desperate times call for desperate measures and I am unsurprised by the Borro-approach to lending. It is a system that has existed for centuries and will continue to do so. However, the reason why these borrowing terms are not mainstream is down to the terms and conditions of the lending. My advice for those considering this type of lending is to read the fine print carefully, ensure you have strong terms to recover your possession, be aware of timelines or deadlines and be aware that the amount lent is usually much less than the worth of the item used as collateral.”