Funding Circle co-founder and CEO Samir Desai was tweeting about this yesterday evening: And now it's happened. Today, the London-based fintech startup effectively crossed the milestone, having lent more than £1 billion to British businesses since its founding.
According to Desai, Funding Circle also lent another £250 million in the US and Europe. Heavily backed by some of the world's biggest investors, including Index Ventures, Accel Partners, BlackRock, Union Square Ventures and DST Global, Funding Circle was founded in 2009.
Its main rival in the UK, Zopa, says it has lent £1.22 billion since 2005, and is reportedly planning to raise more than $100 million to intensify the competition.
Funding Circle also has big plans, by the way: in time, the company wants to lend $100 billion a year. Two months ago, the company acquired Germany-based Zencap, a much smaller rival backed by Rocket Internet, to complement its organic growth.
No doubt we'll hear more from Funding Circle in 2016 and beyond.
**Also read:**
Europe’s online alternative finance market grew by 144% last year to nearly €3 billion
British fintech star Zopa reportedly raising more than $100 million at a $760 million valuation
UK fintech startup Ebury lands $83 million to fuel international growth
Would you like to write the first comment?
Login to post comments