Lending Works sold to alternative investment manager
Lending Works has been acquired by alternative investment manager Intriva Capital.
The peer-to-peer lender has sold 100 per cent of its equity to the fund manager which focuses on special situations and distressed investment strategies across Western Europe.
Intriva has further committed to providing significant additional funding and capital to support the growth of the business following completion, Lending Works said.
Peer2Peer Finance News had queried why a new charge was registered on a Lending Works Companies House document this week.
Read more: The P2P lenders currently closed to retail lenders
Nicholas Harding (pictured), founder and chief executive officer of Lending Works, will continue to lead the business, alongside the existing management team.
Intriva’s Simon Finn, Dean Walsh and Tom Saunders, will join Lending Works’ board as non-executive directors.
“Under the leadership of founder Nick Harding, Lending Works has become one of the UK’s most successful challenger consumer credit businesses operating in the UK today,” Finn, managing partner at Intriva Capital, said.
“With a diversified funding base, the company is now in a position to realise the historical investment in the platform by continuing to offer great products, supported by market-leading technology and underwriting capabilities – so critical in the market conditions of today.
“The Intriva team has extensive operational experience managing and growing consumer lending businesses in the UK and across Europe.
“We will work in close partnership with Nick and his team, helping to expand the successful existing operations, while venturing into new areas and products where we collectively believe there are opportunities.”
Read more: Lending Works investors welcome normalisation period plans
Harding said the move would “ultimately help us to realise our ambition of becoming the market leader.”
The financial terms of the deal are not being disclosed.
Lending Works has gone through challenging times, having recently extended its ‘normalisation period’, as borrowers request more time to make their payments.
The initial ‘normalisation period’ was introduced in early April in response to the coronavirus pandemic. It was due to end after 90 days, in early July.
However, in a note to investors Lending Works said the ‘normalisation period’ will continue until October, so that the platform’s borrowers can continue to access payment holidays and deferrals where needed.
