We are now just over two months away from the LendIt 2014 conference in San Francisco and I want to give everyone an update. For those who don’t know about LendIt, read my previous announcement. Basically, LendIt 2014 will be the largest gathering on the planet for people interested in p2p and online lending.
Registrations are continuing to come in strong. As of today we have 238 people signed up with more coming in every day. We expect to reach our goal of 800 attendees. The early bird price ended over a month ago but we still have discounted pricing of $795 available until the end of March. And don’t forget Lend Academy readers get an additional 25% discount by entering the code LENDACADEMYVIP at checkout. You can register here.
All the Major Players are Signing on as Sponsors
All the big names in the p2p lending industry have now committed to be sponsors, led by Lending Club, our headline sponsor. We also have Prosper as our Platinum sponsor and Funding Circle as our Gold sponsor. For a complete list of sponsors check out our dedicated sponsors page. If you are interested in joining this esteemed list you can download our sponsor packet here.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all of our sponsors for their support. It means the world to us and we couldn’t put this event on without it.
Exhibitors Booths are More Than 50% Sold Out
A big part of LendIt 2014 will be our Exhibitor hall. This is where all the meals and breaks will be held and people will be able to chat with the many platforms, funds and service providers in the industry. We have had a tremendous response for exhibitors and only have 17 slots left. We expect to sell out of those spaces well in advance of the conference. If you are thinking about reserving a slot you can download our exhibitor packet here.
Agenda and Speakers
We are in the process of finalizing our agenda and speakers. We have sent out a bunch of speaker invitations and more are going out shortly.
While the speaker lineup has not been finalized yet I can tell you that, like last year, the CEO of Lending Club, Renaud Laplanche, will be kicking the event off with the morning keynote. There will also be presentations from many other industry leaders including Ron Suber of Prosper and Charles Moldow of Foundation Capital. We also hope to throw in a surprise or two.
The agenda has been updated this week with some new sessions. We are now including a real estate panel as well as a technology panel. There will also be a workshop track and many company presentations that will happen outside of the main program.
Sunday Night Cocktail Party is Almost Sold Out
We are kicking off LendIt 2014 with a special cocktail party on Sunday night May 4th sponsored by Lending Club. This event will be held at the spectacular 46th floor reception room at the Hilton called Cityscape. This room has expansive views of San Francisco Bay all the way from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Bay Bridge.
The cocktail party is optional for attendees and does carry an additional cost of $95. As of this writing there are only 20 tickets left and we expect this event to be completely sold out within the next couple of days. There is limited space in this room so we cannot have more than 250 people.
Book a Discounted Room at the Hilton
The location of LendIt 2014 is the beautiful Hilton Hotel Union Square in downtown San Francisco. It is not an inexpensive hotel so we have secured a discounted block of rooms. But they are filling up fast. If you are coming to LendIt and have not yet booked your room click here to reserve your room at the Hilton.
Watch our Live Broadcast for Free
I realize that many Lend Academy readers do not have the means or the desire to travel to San Francisco for LendIt 2014. So, just like last year, we will be simulcasting the event live online thanks to our Webcast sponsor LendKey. Stay tuned for more details of this broadcast.
I look forward to seeing many of you in San Francisco in May. It is going to be a great event.
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