British taxpayers now own stock in Killing Kittens, a company located in the UK that hosts private women-only “sex parties,” after the UK government converted a loan it had given the business to help it survive the outbreak into an ownership position.
As a member of the British Business Bank’s Covid Future Fund, which aided fledgling businesses in need of funding during the coronavirus epidemic, the company obtained the financing in 2020. According to the Financial Times, Killing Kittens is worth around 15 million pounds, of which the UK government owns about 1.5%.
“A share that, in contrast to many other FF grantees who have failed, has gained in value by 60% in a year. Some people could consider it a wise investment, wrote firm founder and 17-year-old Emma Sayle in a tweet.
According to the organization’s website, Killing Kittens was established in 2005 and hosts private members-only sex parties in major cities all over the world “where, for the first time, women were in charge of the narrative and events.” Additionally, it has created a social network for adults exclusively.
According to The Guardian, the firm has roughly 180,000 subscribers and an annual revenue of about £1.4 million, with about 80% of that revenue coming from the UK.
Sayle stated that the business has raised £1 million in its most recent round of finance, putting a value of about £15 million on it, in an interview with The Financial Times. According to a CNN article, the corporation saw a 330% surge in online traffic during the epidemic.
A government programme called the British Business Bank’s Future Fund was established in May 2020 with the goal of assisting UK-based businesses who are struggling financially as a result of the Covid epidemic. According to CNN, it typically offers startups capital between £125,000 and £5 million as long as they at least equal the cash from private investors.
A provision in the loans allows for their conversion to stock during the company’s upcoming round of financing. As a result, British taxpayers now own shares in hundreds of companies, including the Black Sheep Coffee chain and the Bolton Wanderers football team.
Through convertible loan agreements, the Fund invested £1.1 billion to 1,190 businesses.
2020 saw controversy around the Future Fund’s financing to Killing Kittens, with Labour MP Sarah Champion pleading with the Chancellor to halt government support for sex party organisers.
