Private credit has grown rapidly across Europe, but much of that capital still flows towards businesses that fit a fairly conventional lending profile. For thousands of viable mid-market companies, securing finance remains considerably harder.
That gap is where Fuels Capital sees an opportunity. Founded in Stockholm in 2025, the private credit company has already financed more than 50 businesses in Sweden and is now expanding across Northern and Western Europe, with loans of up to €25million.
We spoke to Robin Gerum, CEO and co-founder of Fuels Capital, about why so many entrepreneur-led businesses struggle to access finance, what it takes to lend against more complicated company structures and the thinking behind the firm’s European expansion.
Tell us more about your company and its offerings
Fuels Capital is a European private credit company. We provide asset-backed lending for owner-led and entrepreneur-managed companies, with funding of up to €25million secured against a mix of asset classes. We specialise in situations where banks, private credit funds, and bond markets can’t act.
What problem was your company set up to solve?
Europe’s €39billion debt financing gap – or, more specifically, the entrepreneurs and businesses that fall through the cracks.
Our market analysis suggests that 25-30 per cent of European mid-market companies don’t qualify for any of the mainstream financing channels: bank lending, private credit funds, or bond markets. That’s because today’s private credit market is built around companies with stable, predictable earnings, meaning those who don’t fit that template – startups, family-run businesses, and firms in transition, growth, or restructuring – are left without financing options.
We’re helping those underserved businesses by providing asset-backed financing secured against real estate, financial assets, unlisted shares, and other assets with underlying intrinsic value. That way, founders can raise capital without giving up equity.
Since launch, how has your company evolved?
Since launching last year, we’ve already financed more than 50 companies and assessed over 300 cases across Sweden. That has given us the confidence to take our offering across borders, as we just announced our expansion into North and Western Europe. We raised our maximum loan size to €25million to support that shift and back more companies – especially those that need ticket sizes as large as their ambition.
Part of that growth journey has been bringing Gabriella Sahlman on board as co-founder and managing partner. She’s a private credit industry legend who co-founded Ex-Proventus Capital Partners in 2004, and is bringing her more than two decades of European credit and growth investing to the team.
What has been the biggest challenge or most ‘tricky moment’ to overcome?
The hardest part early on was underwriting. Businesses with complex and irregular structures take time to understand and analyse properly, and the instinct in this market is to pass on anything that doesn’t fit a standard template. Building a model that lets us take on that challenge without grinding to a halt – and without compromising judgment – was the thing we had to get right before we could scale.
What are your biggest achievements or ‘proudest moment’ so far?
Next to taking the risk of starting a new business venture, it has to be this moment right now. One year after launching, we already have a proven offering in Sweden which gives us the opportunity to take it to Northern and Western Europe. It’s incredibly exciting to achieve that validation so early on and be able to scale so quickly.
How would you describe the culture of your company?
We run a lean, experienced team, and we hire for judgment – typically where AI still falls short. Working with companies with atypical structures means there’s no set template or historical data to operate on, so we need people who can think independently and are comfortable sitting with a problem. It’s demanding, but supportive: people challenge but back each other when a situation is hard to call.
What’s in store for the future?
We want to keep expanding across Europe and reach more of the companies that can’t currently get financing. Many successful entrepreneurs and investors sit on illiquid assets yet struggle to access capital when opportunities arise. They are paper rich, and cash poor – which is something we can help with. After all, we rely on these companies to spearhead Europe’s collective economic growth.
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