Flender, a marketplace lending platform in the UK, is seeking to raise 500,009 british pounds from an equity crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs; the company offers P2P loans through a mobile application; the firm's business model seeks to connect borrowers with lenders in their social network helping to facilitate social network lending. Source
Flender has launched a marketplace lending platform to facilitate social network lending for individuals and businesses; during its pilot period it successfully financed social network borrowing in Ireland for business startups, small business expansion, car finance, home improvements and student loans; the launch follows a successful Seedrs fundraising campaign that raised 500,000 British pounds ($608,680). Source
The firm recently launched in Ireland with a peer-to-peer platform lending model that integrates a borrower's social network in the lending process; it has received Financial Conduct Authority approval and says the additional funds will help it to launch in the UK; the firm is seeking GBP2 million ($2.60 million) in equity funding and will also potentially add more debt funding; Oli Cavanagh, founder of Flender, says he expects most of the funding to come from institutional investors. Source
Marketplace lending platform Flender has reached its investment goal on Seedrs; firm has received investment of 500,000 British pounds ($608,680); the firm's crowdfunding campaign will close on January 17 and it plans to launch in the first quarter of 2017; the platform will provide innovative business credit services that facilitate lending through a borrower's social network. Source
Flexiti Financial has announced Diane Brisebois and Rick Padulo as the first two members of its advisory board; Diane Brisebois is president and CEO of the Retail Council of Canada; Rick Padulo is Chairman and CEO of Padulo Integrated, which provides multi-media retail communications services; Flexiti Financial is a growing provider of point-of-sale financing technology for retailers and recently received the Emerging Consumer Lending Platform award at LendIt USA 2017; its new board advisors will seek to support the firm's growth and advise the firm on its strategy for business development and retail expansion. Source
Leading Canadian point-of-sale (POS) platform Flexiti Financial raised an oversubscribed CAD$6.25 million (USD$5 million) convertible debt offering; they will use the capital to accelerate growth and improve technology; according to Flexiti Financial Founder and CEO Peter Kalen: "Retailers across Canada are looking for unique solutions to increase sales and maintain customer loyalty in a highly competitive and shifting market. Flexiti Financial's POS lending platform has become an important tool in their sales arsenal, and this investment will help us better serve our retail partners while managing our growth across Canada." Source
Newly launched marketplace lender Float is using alternative credit scoring to reach a target market of credit averse borrowers; the firm is seeking to provide credit to millennial borrowers with limited credit history; offering a digital lending solution for balancing customers' finances; the firm offers credit lines ranging from $50 to $1,000 and instead of pulling traditional credit reports for credit underwriting, the firm bases its approval decision from access to a customer's bank account transactions. Source
Fluid received the LangDi PitchIt Fintech Choice Award; competing as one of eight finalists in the LangDi PitchIt competition, the company was recognized for its development of an innovative credit product for college students; Fluid provides college students with interest free loans of up to $500 and is supported by adtech revenue. Source
PeerIQ released its fourth quarter "Marketplace Lending Securitization Tracker" this week; marketplace lending accounted for $2.4 billion of the securitization market in the fourth quarter; data from the fourth quarter report shows securitization investments as an increasingly important source of capital for marketplace lending platforms; in 2016 70% of loans were invested in through securitizations. Source
It has been reported that Kabbage is interested in acquiring OnDeck Capital. S&P Global recently published an analysis of a potential deal. This week Kabbage announced a new originations milestone of $3 billion since inception. We take a closer look at the originations and pro forma estimates of the two companies provided by S&P Global.
OnDeck's annual originations have increased from approximately $15.9 million in 2008 to $2.40 billion in 2016. Estimates from S&P Global show combined loan originations for the two firms of $3.82 billion for 2016. In addition to synergies from similar balance sheet and securitization funding sources, S&P Global also notes the increased value Kabbage could likely bring to OnDeck's line of credit product. Pro forma estimates put line of credit originations at approximately 50% for the combined entities. Kabbage has considerable expertise in small business line of credit lending and it's a product OnDeck launched in 2013 and has recently been focused on. Source