The Surrey County Cricket Club Bond, launched on 17 August to obtain funds towards the redevelopment of the Oval Cricket Ground, has raised £2m in the first 48 hours.
The club hopes to raise £3.5m from the bond – which offers investors a 5.5 per cent gross interest over a fixed five-year term – to redevelop the Peter May and Lock Stands, bringing the capacity of the Kia Oval to 25,300.
In addition, the Oval's spectator facilities will be improved with extra catering units, toilets and circulation space and undercover areas.
Surrey County Cricket Club (SCCC) says the planned redevelopment of its home ground follows “strong” financial performance over recent years.
The club's accounts show that T20 revenue has doubled since 2012 to more £3m, with the 2015 NatWest T20 Blast attracting nearly 120,000 fans to the Kia Oval.
Annual revenue from conferencing and events also rose from £1.8m in 2012 to more than £4m in 2014 – while membership income increased from £1m to £1.7m in the same period.
SCCC chair Richard Thompson said: “We’re very pleased with the uptake of the bond so far, especially as it is currently exclusively open to Surrey County Cricket Club Members.
“It highlights the support that our members give the club which is crucial and has been through our 170-year history.”
Surrey is the second first class cricket club to use a bond to fund improvements at its home venue.
Last year (September 2014), Lancashire County Cricket Club (LCCC) launched a retail bond in the hope of raising £3m to build a new hotel at its Old Trafford ground in Manchester.
Investors were invited to put money into a five-year initial fixed-term bond offering 7 per cent gross interest per annum for investments from £1,000.
The LCCC bond reached its target in November.