Simon Champ is a pioneer in the lending space creating the first publicly traded investment vehicle; P2PGI launched in may of 2014 in a £200 million IPO and they have now raised a total of £900 million; Champ shares how he first became interested in this space and how much the industry has changed since the fund first launched. Source
Marketplace crowdfunding platform Lenderwize is reporting success as the first online lending and project financing platform for telecommunications businesses; the firm offers invoice financing, project financing and equity financing with rates of return averaging 6% to 14% annually; they recently surveyed telcos in the industry finding among other statistics a cash flow market opportunity of $22 billion; the platform now has $7.3 million in borrower requests and $10 million committed from institutional investors and six equity investors; it is also expecting new capital from business development presentations at TechFluence's Fintech Meets Telecom in Frankfurt and the Fintech Circle and AngelDen's Pitch in London. Source
According to P2P-Banking, Lendico has stopped originating consumer loans in Germany; website is referring consumer loan borrowers to Finanzcheck, but the company is still offering business loans in Germany; company has also ended consumer loans in the Netherlands and stopped new loan originations in Brazil and South Africa; recent activity from the firm includes an announcement last week regarding a joint venture with Postfinance in Switzerland. Source
Lending Works has launched its innovative finance ISA; company offers unsecured loans to consumers; investors can invest over three or five years earning approximately 4% to 4.7% respectively; platforms RateSetter, Zopa and Funding Circle are still awaiting full authorization; on the subject of the major players still awaiting authorization Matthew Powell, director at Lending Works commented: "Among peer-to-peer firms there is some frustration over why it's taken so long. The regulator might have uncovered some things that they're not entirely happy about. I think the FCA has been surprised in the variation over the types of platforms they have had to examine. We're an easier prospect than some to understand - we're literally just the middleman, we don't take a balance sheet risk, and we don't lend our own money." Source
The platform reported a record month in August after launching the cashback offer, gaining over GBP2.25 ($2.91 million) million of investment; LendingCrowd will extend the offer through September 30, giving investors GBP150 ($195) for every GBP2,500 ($3,257) invested; the platform offers investors access to SME loans and has lent GBP17 million ($21.95 million) since launching in 2014. Source
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has approved LendingCrowd for full FCA authorization which allows the company to offer investments through IFISAs; the approval follows a £2.75 million Scottish Enterprise investment in the platform's small business loans last week; the FCA's last approval was in October for P2PFA member firm, Lending Works. Source
LendingCrowd will give investors GBP150 ($195) for every GBP2,500 ($3,257) investment they make on the platform through August 31; the offer is open to new and existing investors and can also be obtained through investment in the firm's new IFISA; the Edinburgh-based peer-to-peer lending platform is primarily focused on SME loans and has originated GBP15 million ($19.5 million) in cumulative lending from 182 loans. Source
LendingCrowd has launched its innovative finance individual savings accounts (IFISA); the account has a minimum investment of 1,000 British pounds ($1,250); the account investment will be automatically allocated to a portfolio of LendingCrowd loans; the portfolio will target a rate of return of 6% for its investors; the IFISA product has been well received with the Lending Works IFISA launch attracting more than 500,000 British pounds ($624,850) within three hours. Source
The new industry association called Digital Finance Forum was founded by Christian Faes and Ian Thomas; it aims to bring...
UK based online real estate lender LendInvest has securitized $328mn of UK prime Buy-to-Let mortgage loans; Christian Faes, Co-Founder and...