Capital Protocol

Capital Protocol is a UK fintech platform that gives eligible private investors access to gold-backed private lending opportunities. The operating company, Capital Protocol London Ltd, was incorporated in August 2024 (company no. 15888738).

As an investor, you fund a loan to a gold holder who borrows against gold already held with BullionVault or GoldCore. Capital Protocol verifies the collateral using zkTLS zero-knowledge proofs, so the gold stays in place and full account balances stay private. You earn an agreed interest rate over the loan term.

The platform also licenses the same verification technology to lenders and credit providers as a B2B infrastructure service. It is not a regulated investment product: no FCA authorisation was identified, and the firm describes itself as operating under exemptions in the UK Financial Promotion Order. Funding arrangements are private and not covered by the FSCS.

You review live funding opportunities on the Capital Protocol interface. Each opportunity represents a gold holder seeking a loan backed by physical gold held with BullionVault or GoldCore.

The gold holder connects their eligible custodian account through the platform and starts a collateral verification request. The platform retrieves data directly from the custodian and generates a cryptographic proof confirming the existence, value and integrity of the holdings. The proof is designed to be tamper-evident while keeping the holder's wider financial position private, and the gold stays in its existing custody arrangement.

Once verified, the holder can submit a funding request. You see the opportunity alongside the verified collateral data and decide whether to participate on the commercial terms set by the credit provider. If funding is agreed, third-party infrastructure (identity verification and Open Banking settlement) supports completion.

Live opportunities shown on the platform in September 2026 were denominated in LBMA gold held at BullionVault London, with amounts between £3,000 and £60,000, terms of 6 to 12 months, agreed loan-to-value ratios of 60 to 70 per cent, and agreed rates of 6.2 to 7.1 per cent APR.

So what: you are underwriting a private loan to an individual or entity holder. The verification step confirms the collateral exists; credit assessment, pricing and recovery sit with the credit provider, and there is no platform-level protection or secondary market.

Capital Protocol offers two connected services.

For eligible investors: gold-backed funding opportunities. A private marketplace where you can lend to gold holders whose collateral has been verified through the platform. You receive the interest rate agreed for that specific loan; the gold remains with the custodian as security.

For lenders and credit providers: verified collateral assessment. A B2B infrastructure service using zero-knowledge proofs to establish the existence, value and integrity of eligible gold holdings from custodian data. The output is a cryptographic proof intended to meet the evidentiary standards used in private lending.

The company states it is not a lender, broker or financial adviser. It does not give investment advice, take custody of gold, or set the commercial terms of any funding arrangement. Credit providers and investors are responsible for their own due diligence.

There is no secondary market, no pooled fund and no published performance record. Eligible custodians are currently limited to BullionVault and GoldCore.

Eligible investors. Self-certified sophisticated investors and certified high-net-worth individuals who want exposure to private, gold-backed lending opportunities. You lend to a gold holder, the gold stays with the custodian as collateral, and you earn interest over the agreed term. This is not a route for ordinary retail investors, and there is no ISA wrapper.

Gold holders. Individuals and entities holding eligible physical gold in professional custody with BullionVault or GoldCore who want liquidity without selling. The proposition is aimed at holders who value a private and quick verification process as part of a wider funding strategy.

Credit providers and lenders. Family offices, private credit funds, wealth managers and other institutional or professional investors looking for collateralised lending opportunities where the underlying security is independently verifiable and administration is largely automated. Capital Protocol also licenses its verification technology to these firms directly.

All opportunities are subject to eligibility, verification and the terms set by the relevant credit provider.

Capital Protocol was founded in 2024 and is an early-stage platform. It does not currently publish historical lending volumes, investor numbers, default rates or investor return data.

Its website currently displays four funded gold-backed opportunities totalling £90,500. That scale is useful as an indication of initial activity, but it is not a track record in the conventional sense. Anyone considering lending through the platform should treat it as a new entrant and size exposure accordingly.

Capital Protocol also provides its verification technology to lenders and credit providers directly. Using zkTLS, the platform generates zero-knowledge proofs from custodian data, confirming the existence, value and integrity of gold holdings without moving the metal, exposing login credentials or disclosing total balances. The service is designed to replace manual PDF and email-based checks with a structured, auditable process that takes minutes rather than weeks. Capital Protocol remains a neutral technology provider: it does not extend credit, intermediate funds or custody assets.

Capital Protocol describes itself as a technology platform rather than a lender, broker, custodian or financial adviser. It states that it does not extend credit, intermediate funds, provide investment recommendations, or take custody of the underlying gold, and that all funding decisions and commercial terms are set by the relevant credit provider.

We found no entry for the firm on the FCA Financial Services Register at the time of review. The company states that it operates in line with its regulatory position, including applicable exemptions under the UK Financial Promotion Order, which is the route commonly used to promote unregulated opportunities to certified high-net-worth and self-certified sophisticated investors.

What this means for you:

• Loans arranged through the platform are private agreements. They are not covered by the FSCS, and access to the Financial Ombudsman Service is unlikely to apply.
• Capital is at risk. Recovery in a default depends on the security taken by the credit provider over the gold and on the enforceability of that arrangement, not on the platform.
• Verification confirms that collateral exists and what it is worth. It does not assess borrower creditworthiness, and gold prices move, so loan-to-value can deteriorate during the term.
• Confirm the legal entity (Capital Protocol London Ltd, company no. 15888738) and read the documentation for any individual arrangement before committing funds.