The founder of Metro Bank, a UK challenger bank, says app-only banks are "all hype" and sees them more as a provider of solutions and not banking; Vernon Hill told Business Insider in an interview that Metro Bank has been around for six years, has a market cap of $3.2 billion but only started to become profitable now; he went on to say: "No mobile-only bank can deliver anything I can't deliver in the next minute and a half. What they're offering you is a tool, not a solution. The customer wants the best of every channel and my job is to deliver them the best of every channel." Source
BlueVine raised $49 million in a Series D funding round from existing investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners; BlueVine has so far provided $200 million in working capital and says they are on track to lend out $500 million in 2017; BlueVine credits partnerships for a lot of their success, in particular the deal with QuickBooks who says the BlueVine offer is very popular among users. Source
Insurtech company, Hippo, has raised $14 million in a Series A funding round led by Horizons Ventures; firm provides online home insurance offerings at a more affordable market price due to its online business model and direct to consumer offerings; says its policies are customized to meet the needs of modern lifestyles; plans to use the funding for product development and marketing for its launch to customers in California in 2017. Source
Online multi-lender, Bizfi, has announced a new partnership with Internex Capital; Bizfi will add Internex to its network of lenders on the platform; Internex will offer asset-based revolving lines of credit from $250,000 to $5 million for small to mid-sized businesses in manufacturing, wholesale, trucking, business and consulting services; through its online lending platform Bizfi originates loans and also matches borrowers with its network of over 45 lenders. Source
FinSight Ventures, a global venture capital firm focused on fintech companies, is seeking a portfolio manager for investing in real estate loans; the position will first be on a consulting basis which may lead to a permanent role; the firm has invested in companies such as Earnest, Dianrong, Lending Club and Financeit.
Patch of Land has filed a Form D 506c with the Securities and Exchange Commission; it seeks to raise $3.2 million in debt capital with a minimum investment of $250,000; the company has already raised $1.5 million; the company raised a total of $23.6 million in 2015 and has facilitated over $100 million in loans. Source
One, Inc. has announced the closing of a Series B funding round which raised $20 million for the firm; the Series B funding follows a Series A funding round in 2014 and brings total capital raised to $36.7 million; investors in the Series B funding round included AXA Strategic Ventures, MassMutual Ventures and H&Q Asia Pacific; over the past three years the company has tripled its annual revenue and quadrupled its number of customers; offers a full Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform that provides for all the core functions an insurance company needs; provides solutions for both new market entrants and large insurance providers seeking new technology platforms; it plans to use the new capital to add products and business lines as well as for global expansion. Source
The National Crowdfunding Association of Canada (NCFA) has published a report providing insight on the country's crowdfunding market; identifies a need for regulation that will help support the industry's growth while also setting standards for the market overall; predicts transaction value of $190 million for 2016; says the industry has grown 48% from 2013 to 2015. Source
Money Platform has launched in the UK with full authorization from the Financial Conduct Authority; the platform provides short term personal loans and seeks to offer a more affordable solution than payday loans; it will include 3 to 12 week loans of up to 1,000 British pounds ($1,255) with interest rates ranging from 0.3% to 0.7% per day; the platform is targeting 12% net returns for investors and will retain 35% of the interest payments from each loan; overall the most a borrower will pay in interest on the platform is 165%. Source
Even Financial has been rapidly growing its business, now reporting over $1.5 billion in loan requests through its technology offerings; firm says loan originations from its services have been growing at a quarterly rate of 205%; the growth has been the result of increased interest in its offerings and expanding partnerships with lending businesses; firm provides technology for publishers seeking to build online solutions that compare lenders; it also offers its technology services to merchants for helping their clients identify the best financing options for purchases. Source