SoFi has developed a new marketplace lending fund primarily targeting family offices; a regulatory filing shows the fund as SoFi Prime Income Fund with 33 investors each investing a minimum of $500,000; total fund investment is $105 million; the Fund will focus on investing in SoFi's unsecured student and personal loans. Source
Unison offers a unique solution to help homebuyers purchase their home; company provides up to half of the down payment to purchase a home and stands to benefit if the home value increases; product is available in 13 states with 8 lenders and the company is close to one thousand deals completed with an anticipated three thousand additional deals in 2017; chairman and co-CEO Thomas Sponholtz answers other questions about the platform from Crowdfund Insider. Source
The app is available only for the platform's investors; Lend Academy provides screenshots from the app and more details in their article; investors can now invest through the mobile app and also open a new account; the app provides much of the same functionality available through the desktop application allowing investors to monitor their account and make investments from any iOS mobile device. Source
Experienced credit market executive Kathryn Petralia talks with Crowdfund Insider about fintech and the business growth of Kabbage; the firm has originated approximately $3 billion in loans to 100,000 US small businesses since 2011; it has developed lending partnerships with global banks Santander and Scotiabank; it has also been active in promoting small business lending through its development of the SMART Box in collaboration with the Innovative Lending Platform Association; other highlights from the interview include insight on fintech predictions and regulations, Kabbage's involvement with the Consumer Financial Data Rights group, initiatives within the Innovative Lending Platform Association and Petralia's career advice. Source
For the past seven years Motif has offered investors a platform for building portfolios around customized themes personalized to their investment interests and objectives; to extend the platform's offerings and provide investors with a chance to express their personal values through investing, the firm now offers Motif Impact portfolios; the firm's CEO Hardeep Walia provides details on the platform's new investment initiative and explains how the firm's offerings have evolved with economic and social movements in the US. Source
China Rapid Finance has filed for an IPO in the US; it will be the fifth online lender to trade on a public US exchange and the second Chinese online lender to list in the US; Lend Academy provides more details on China Rapid Finance and the IPO in their article; the firm is hoping to raise $100 million from the IPO; it is a peer-to-peer lender matching borrowers with investors and does not lend from its balance sheet; the platform targets underserved consumers and uses thousands of data points from alternative data sources including information on work history, payments, e-commerce, telco, search and social data for its credit underwriting. Source
Fifth Third Bank will expand its partnership with Accion US Network which provides access to a network of small businesses; the initiative will focus on increased lending for underserved small businesses in Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and Ohio; the effort is also an extension of the bank's five-year, $30 billion Community Commitment and will utilize $10 billion allocated to small business lending, product innovation and enhanced underwriting and fulfillment for this alternative lending channel. Source
Scott Sanborn took over as chief executive officer at Lending Club, facing the challenge of rebuilding confidence in an innovative business model that helped to introduce the concept of P2P lending to the US in 2006; bringing unique experiences from a career that began in advertising, Sanborn has been with Lending Club since 2010, beginning in a role as chief marketing officer for the firm; in the Q&A he provides details about the firm's strategy for evolving through challenging times and what the firm is doing to meet new goals for the future. Source
Kabbage's chief technology officer Amala Duggirala has taken a new role with Regions as the bank's chief investment officer; Amala Duggirala has been with Kabbage since November 2016 leading the firm's technology platform efforts; prior to Kabbage she worked as executive vice president of application development at payments technology company ACI Worldwide; her technology experience in lending and payments will help to support and enhance product development and innovation in her new chief investment officer role at Regions. Source
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index decreased to 104.7 from 105.3 in March and fell below expectations of 104.8; small businesses were less optimistic about business growth as momentum from the Trump administration slowed; lower sales expectations and uncertainty were key factors for the March Small Business Optimism Index report which collected its data prior to the delayed Obamacare vote which many small business owners were watching closely. Source