During the week I share the latest marketplace lending news on Twitter as it happens. Then every Saturday I take the most interesting news items and blog posts from the past week and share them here.
The big news this week was Zopa in the UK celebrating their 10-year anniversary. They were the very first p2p lending platform to launch back in 2005 and they are still going strong today.
Born in a barn, peer-to-peer lender Zopa is about to break £1bn in loans from City A.M. – There is a lot of coverage of Zopa this month as they celebrate 10 years in business.
Five Trends Driving the Growth in Marketplace Lending Today from Orchard – My guest post on Orchard about the latest trends.
SoFi May Get $3.5 Billion Valuation in IPO from Crowdfund Insider – It is looking like SoFi will be the third marketplace lending company to go public, possibly at a $3.5B valuation.
How to Quantify Lender Risk in P2P from AltFi – Excellent article about quantifying risk in p2p by Mike Baliman of the London Fintech Podcast.
Exclusive: Renaud Laplanche on Growing Lending Club, Post-IPO from LendingMemo – Great in depth interview with Lending Club CEO Renaud Laplanche.
Lending Club and HomeAdvisor Partner to Deliver Home Improvement Financing from MarketWatch – Lending Club partnering with a home improvement site to provide loans (press release).
Salvation Lies Within from Blue Elephant Capital Management – The argument for institutional investors in the p2p lending market.
Infographic – 10 years of P2P lending in numbers from the Zopa Blog – Congrats to the Zopa team on 10 good years!
Victory Park Fund Floats from AltFi – Simon Champ has company. Victory Park Fund has floated on the LSE.
LendIt Rings The Nasdaq Opening Bell from the LendIt Blog – It was a blast in NYC this week ringing the Nasdaq opening bell.
Even Financial Emerges from Stealth Mode to Boost Supply to P2P Lending Marketplaces from Forex Magnates – With some heavy hitters as backers Even Financial is poised to become an important part of the p2p lending ecosystem.
LendIt is just one month away! from Lending Club – Lending Club shares LendIt on the Lending Club Blog.
Budget 2015: Will tax-free peer-to-peer lending get the go-ahead? from BBC Business (UK) – The UK budget to be released next week could have some very good news for p2p lending platforms.
From the Lend Academy Forum
The Lend Academy forum is where investors go to discuss p2p lending. Below are some topics that were being discussed this week.
How Do You Monitor Notes In Grace Period/Late For Potential Sale – Discussion on strategies for tracking loans as their status changes over time.
List of Funds that purchase product from Lending Club, Prosper, etc. – A reader looks to aggregate a list of companies that purchase on Lending Club and Prosper.
Assistance Needed – Historical Return? – A lively discussion on filter and formula strategies for investing.
Peter Renton is the chairman and co-founder of LendIt Fintech, the world’s first and largest digital media and events company focused on fintech. Peter has been writing about fintech since 2010 and he is the author and creator of the Fintech One-on-One Podcast, the first and longest-running fintech interview series. Peter has been interviewed by the Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, The New York Times, CNBC, CNN, Fortune, NPR, Fox Business News, the Financial Times, and dozens of other publications.