Podcast 17: Noah Breslow of OnDeck on Small Business Lending

A lot has been written about small businesses and their lack of access to capital. This was exacerbated by the financial crisis but it is something that many small businesses have struggled with for a long time. Traditionally there have been two primary sources of outside capital for a small business: a bank loan and a credit card. Not any more. Today, small businesses have a wealth of financing options and one of these options is OnDeck.

In the latest episode of the Lend Academy Podcast I talk with Noah Breslow, the CEO of OnDeck, about their lending products and the small businesses that use them. OnDeck is one of the leading alternative lenders in the small business space having issued over $1 billion in loans since they began operations in 2007. In this wide ranging interview you will learn:

How the OnDeck business model works.
The amount of time business owners will typically spend applying for a bank loan.
The types of businesses who apply for a loan at OnDeck.
Why a business will apply for a loan at OnDeck as opposed to traditional funding sources.
The most common use for an OnDeck loan.
Who is supplying the capital for these loans and how this mix is changing.
Why OnDeck is not looking to attract retail investors to its platform.
The different loan options for borrowers at OnDeck.
The weighted average Annual Percentage Rate of loans at OnDeck.
How and why OnDeck chose this pricing and this segment of small business lending.
Why their customers will often choose a higher interest rate option with a shorter loan term.
One of the core benefits of the OnDeck lending product over merchant cash advances.
An explanation of the OnDeck Score and how their underwriting allows then to issue loans so quickly.
How they are using alternative data sources in their underwriting.
The economic impact of OnDeck loans.
Details of the first rated securitization of non-SBA business loans put together recently by OnDeck.
OnDeck’s plans for the future.