BorrowersFirst has secured $100 million in new debt funding from Waterfall Asset Management; firm will use the funding primarily to support lending volume growth for its online consumer loan business; firm funds its loans through on-balance sheet debt facilities and whole loan sales with originations by Cross River Bank. Source
Credible is one of the success stories in online lending today. The leading online exchange for student loans has just closed their $10 million Series B funding round that we have been told was "a significant up round." Australian fund manager Regal Funds Management led the round that also included Prosper President Ron Suber. Credible doesn't lend money itself. Instead, it has deep integrations with many of their lending partners (such as CommonBond and College Ave) allowing borrowers not only to compare interest rates but to only see those rates with a high likelihood of approval. Source
OnDeck has announced a new partnership with Wex that will provide credit financing options for Wex's customers; Wex currently provides payment solutions and credit services for corporations and small businesses; the partnership will offer OnDeck's loans of up to $500,000 and credit lines of up to $100,000 for Wex's customers. Source
Lend Academy provides details on how marketplace loans are performing at Lending Club and Prosper; delinquency rates have been increasing since the third quarter of 2014; less risky loan grades have continued to report the best performance; lower quality loans have suffered increased degradation specifically since the third quarter of 2014; Prosper has made fewer interest rate changes than Lending Club and it seems its higher risk loans are performing slightly better; Lending Club announced additional changes to the platform on January 18th. Source
Estimated return for December 2016 production is 6.45%; PMI7, Prosper's underwriting model, was put in place late December, 2016; models are updated every 12 to 18 months; average FICO was higher than lows in 2015 and 2016 but is expected to decrease with an increase in lower grade loans as a result of the new credit risk model; prepayment rates increased and delinquency rates were lower; cumulative gross charge offs have increased but are expected to trend lower. Source
Pepper Hamilton will be hosting a webinar on Tuesday, January 24 at 12:00 PM EST providing insight on the considerations for fintech companies interested in applying for the new fintech charter; topics will include fintech charter advantages, the application process, OCC requirements, OCC oversight and capital requirements; the panel will include Pepper Hamilton lawyers with OCC experience; participants can register here.
Over $300 million has been invested on RealtyShares into residential and commercial real estate projects; the company crossed $200 million in September 2016; individual investors can invest a minimum of $5,000 per project; the company also has multi-billion dollar institutions participating on the platform; to date 550 real estate deals have been done across 1,000 properties, spanning 35 states; RealtyShares has a network of 38,000 accredited investors. Source
An opinion editorial in American Banker makes the case for eliminating the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; says the agency provides for unnecessary expansion of federal regulatory power; suggests a return to segregated oversight; provides a list of overreaching executive powers in addition to its recent unconstitutional ruling. Source
In December the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released its proposal for a fintech charter with an open comment period until January 15; the OCC has received numerous comments which can be found here; Lend Academy and LendIt submitted a response in favor of the fintech charter; their response outlines the difficulties online lenders have in complying with different rules in each of the 50 states; suggests nationalization of regulation would make platform operations more efficient and help the industry to broaden the benefits it can offer to financial inclusion and other nationwide initiatives. Source
AutoFi and Ford have announced a new partnership that will make financing and buying a car available online; Ford will use the AutoFi platform for sales from its Ricart Ford dealership in Groveport, Ohio with expansion planned for dealerships throughout the United States; through the AutoFi platform customers can select a vehicle, access Ford Credit for a financing decision and terms, customize their vehicle protection products, review their paperwork, and schedule a time to complete the sale and pick up the vehicle; Ford Credit also made an equity investment in AutoFi. Source