Zopa becomes profitable
Zopa has become profitable for the first time, just four months after shuttering its peer-to-peer lending business and 21 months after acquiring its banking licence.
The digital bank said that it is likely to remain profitable from this point onwards, and expects to close 2022 with a balance sheet of £2bn.
The company also plans to launch Zopa will launch a fully-regulated Zopa buy-now, pay later (BNPL) product in the autumn, targeting big-ticket items.
“Hitting profitability in just 21 months is a testament to our unique model that meets customer needs by focusing on how they borrow and save – the two things with the most impact on finances,” said Jaidev Janardana (pictured), chief executive of Zopa.
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“Today’s news makes Zopa one of the fastest digital banks to achieve profitability ever and reinforces our thesis on the importance of sustainable growth as a catalyst for accelerated product and market expansion.”
Over the past year, Zopa has transformed its business model, raising $300m (£228m) in a funding round led by Softbank to fuel the growth of its digital bank.
Since launching the bank in 2020, it has attracted £1bn in deposits, with more than £1bn of loans on its balance sheet. It has also issued more than 250,000 credit cards, making it one of the top five credit card issuers in the UK.
Zopa was the world’s first P2P lending platform when it launched in 2005.
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