Wasps fans cheer on their team during the Aviva Premiership match with Exeter Chiefs© Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images

Wasps owner Derek Richardson has warned English rugby could become like Formula One if the Aviva Premiership salary cap is abolished.

Wasps look set to take over as the richest club in world rugby after becoming the first sports club to launch a retail bond scheme listed on the London Stock Exchange - a move which could see the Coventry-based club raise between £25 million and £35 million in as little as two weeks.

The scheme is the latest edition to the club's turnaround, which has snowballed significantly since its purchase of the Ricoh Arena last October and subsequent relocation from Adams Park in High Wycombe. With their latest financial initiative, Wasps are expected to surpass Toulon in terms of annual revenue at the end of next season.

That would give the club, whose average attendances have trebled since the relocation, a huge advantage over its rivals should Premiership Rugby decide to abolish the salary cap. However, Richardson says the cap should not be ditched.

"The salary cap works very well," Richardson said. "There is no point it being like Formula One, when you have your McLarens and Ferraris winning all the time. You need to have the excitement and the fun and the competitiveness there as well.

"The salary cap will increase, but it will increase in line with the central revenue from Premiership Rugby. If it increases in a structured manner it is good for English rugby. There is no need to hike it massively in a short period of time."

While Wasps are closing in on the signing of another marquee player, the money raised from their new scheme will largely go elsewhere. Funds will be pumped back into their Ricoh Arena home and the new training ground, while the coaching pool will also be expanded.

Richardson said: "We have our stars, Christian Wade, Elliot Daly, Joe Launchbury who are very young.

"I am not saying we would never recruit two heavy-duty marquee players but there would have to be a good reason. Nathan Hughes is spectacular; why would we need to get a Richie McCaw or somebody like that when we have the stardust in our team?"