FOLK2FOLK has announced it will open a new branch in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, as part of its national expansion plans. The peer-to-peer platform, which specialises in secured lending to small- and medium-sized businesses, aims to channel over £20m of funding to about 100 local businesses around Harrogate within the first year. The lender said it […]
PEER-TO-PEER lending platforms that engage in wholesale lending may be breaching regulations and need to take action, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has said. The City watchdog is writing to the chief executives of all the platforms to highlight that if a lending business borrows through a P2P platform and lends that money to […]
PEER-TO-PEER lending-focused investment funds are a popular way for investors to get exposure to the ever-growing P2P market. But the unpredictable economic and political environment means the performance of these funds varies. Net asset value (NAV) returns range from three per cent to 20 per cent while discounts to NAV have fallen as low as 20 per cent. […]
RISING inflation could add £6.8bn to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)’ running costs in 2017, a new report has revealed. The research commissioned by commercial insurer RSA also found that 756,000 (14 per cent) of businesses expect their revenues to shrink this year, while over three million (57 per cent) expect them to stay the […]
ZOPA and Funding Circle have been named as some of the top household names in the UK on the annual Superbrands list for 2017. Compiled by the Centre for Brand Analysis, the Superbrands list is split into business and consumer categories with more than 1,500 companies scored on their quality, reliability and distinction. The business […]
LANDBAY has appointed mortgage business specialist Paul Brett as managing director of its intermediaries team. The peer-to-peer lender, which specialises in buy-to-let mortgages, said Brett would be tasked with expanding the reach of its products and strengthening relationships with key third parties. Brett joins from Foundation Home Loans, where he served as the launch team’s […]
REBUILDING Society is the latest peer-to-peer lender to gain full authorisation from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), paving the way for the launch of its Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA). The business lender still needs to get approval from HMRC in order to offer the tax-free wrapper, but it said it has started taking pre-registrations and […]
FINTECH Week 2017 will take place in April, with the aim of attracting more international investment into the sector, the chancellor has announced. The UK government and fintech trade body Innovate Finance are working together to deliver the second annual UK Fintech Week, which will take place in London from 10 to 13 April. The […]
RATESETTER has partnered with TaxAssist Accountants to boost its SME borrower network. The accountancy firm, which provides advice to small businesses through 290 branches across the country, will refer businesses requiring working capital and growth finance to RateSetter’s business finance team. Read more: SMEs unaware they can secure finance on assets The peer-to-peer lending platform […]
BANKS lent more to consumers and businesses in January and mortgage approvals hit a 12-month high, as historically low interest rates continue to fuel the credit boom. Figures from the British Bankers Association (BBA) showed that total consumer borrowing growth rose to £538m, more than doubling from December’s figure. This was primarily driven by the […]
CROWDSTACKER investors are putting more than £7,000 into their Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) on average, the platform has revealed. Karteek Patel, chief executive of Crowdstacker, said the firm was still receiving around £1m a month in total through its tax-free wrapper. The platform, which was one of the first to launch an IFISA last April, […]
MORTGAGE lending last month rose by 1.8 per cent year-on-year to £19.8bn, hitting its highest level for January since 2008. The Council of Mortgage Lenders, who released the figures, said that overall mortgage lending continues to hold up well, but warned of a “twin-track market” in the UK. “Weakness in buy-to-let and home movers has […]
CHINA’S banking regulators have tightened rules to combat fraud in the country’s scandal-hit peer-to-peer lending sector. The China Banking Regulatory Commission announced on Thursday it may force platforms to use commercial banks as third-party fund custodians. Read more: China’s P2P fraud trial is underway And Shanghai’s financial authority is proposing new rules that will require […]
INVESTORS could have a choice of more than a dozen Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) providers by the end of this tax year. 30 firms have now received IFISA manager status, according to HMRC’s latest list, but just seven platforms have currently got products on the market. However, several other platforms have recently received regulatory permissions […]
RATESETTER has partnered with Plum, an artificial intelligence-powered Facebook chatbot that enables consumers to save and invest automatically. Plum’s algorithm identifies consumers’ spending patterns, income and bills, which it uses to calculate a small amount of money that will automatically be put aside every few days. Users can talk with Plum on Facebook Messenger and […]