100 live loans on the marketplace. Weekly Lending Review: week 4

Week 4: 20 – 26 January 2014

We had the busiest week ever at Funding Circle! A massive 118 new loans were made available for you to lend to, we saw 100 loan requests on the marketplace all at the same time, and there were 26 loans which were for £100,000 or more.

The majority of new loans were allocated to the A and B risk bands, and London and the South East had the most loans.

New loans

There were 118 new business loans listed last week and there are currently 92 auctions on the marketplace.

The total value of the new listed loans was £6,085,820; that’s an average of £52,016 per loan. The largest loan value was £150,000 and the smallest loan value was £5,000.

Business loans still available for bidding on for the next 3 days or more:

Weekly marketplace trends

These graphs show the most recent activity on the marketplace. The average gross yield graph is reported weekly and shows a rolling two week average. Number of loans, value of loans and secondary market are reported weekly. The dates on the graph should be read as ‘week beginning’, for example: 20-Jan represents the week of 20th – 26th January.

Weekly average gross yield (2 weeks rolling)

Number of listed loans per week

Listed loan value per week

News you should know

We made it onto Forbes’ list for being one of Britain’s best financial technology businesses.

Community Discussions

This week we’re talking about adding premiums to loan parts. You can join the discussion on our community forum.

Loans defaulted last week

Art manufacturer. Loan ID 973

This Chester business has been trading since 2006 and we received notice of a change in personal circumstances of the director. The original loan amount was £50,000 and all 388 investors have been notified.

Motorcycle dealership. Loan ID 991

This Bedford business has been trading since 2008 and has failed to keep up with repayments. The original loan amount was £40,000 and all 234 investors have been notified.

Scarborough cattle business. Loan ID 1328

This business was established in 2005 and failed to maintain repayments. The original loan amount was £50,000 and all 459 investors have been notified.

Dry cleaners. Loan ID 1833

This Huddersfield business has been trading for 18 years but has breached our terms & conditions. The original loan amount was £15,000 and all 159 investors have been notified.

Our insolvency team are working to recover the outstanding amounts for all of these loans.

Enjoy lending, The Funding Circle Team

Read last week’s Lending Review.

Update to minimum bid rates. Weekly Lending Review: week 3

Week 3: 13 – 19 January 2014

In this week’s lending review we’ve got a further 72 new lending opportunities and an update to minimum bid rates, which will take effect on Monday 3rd February.

The majority of new loans were allocated to the A and B risk bands, and expansion was the most popular reason for needing funding.

New loans

There were 72 new business loans listed last week and there are currently 55 auctions on the marketplace.

The total value of the new listed loans was £4,012,800; that’s an average of £55,733 per loan. The largest loan value was £150,000 and the smallest loan value was £5,000.

Business loans still available for bidding on for the next 3 days or more:

Weekly marketplace trends

These graphs show the most recent activity on the marketplace. The average gross yield graph is reported weekly and shows a rolling two week average. Number of loans, value of loans and secondary market are reported weekly. The dates on the graph should be read as ‘week beginning’, for example: 13-Jan represents the week of 13th – 19th January.

Weekly average gross yield (2 weeks rolling)

Number of listed loans per week

Listed loan value per week

Update to minimum bid rates

We review the minimum bid rates in the middle of every month to decide whether they should be changed or kept the same. A number of factors are considered when reviewing the rates, including general economic conditions and costs of alternative borrowing products.

This month, the decision has been made to increase rates by 0.1% on the A, B, C and C- risk bands. The new rates will come into effect for loan requests listed after 9am on Monday 3rd February 2014. The new rates are as follows:

A+: 6% (no change)

A: 7.9% (+0.1%)

B: 8.9% (+ 0.1%)

C: 9.9% (+ 0.1%)

C-: 11.6% (+ 0.1%)

Community Discussions

This week we’re talking about how unsuccessful bids are shown on your summary page. You can join the discussion on our community forum.

Loans defaulted last week

IT services provider. Loan ID 3696

This Bristol business has been trading since 1998 but has not kept up with repayments. The original loan amount was £100,000 which has been credited back to the accounts of all 1,185 investors affected. For further details on this, please read the announcement on the forum.

Enjoy lending, The Funding Circle Team

Read last week’s Weekly Lending Review.

ISAs on the horizon: December industry news

Despite all the festive cheer, peer-to-peer lending continued to make headlines in December.

Autumn Statement 2013: Peer-to-peer ‘to be included in ISAs’

The month kicked off with speculation around whether the Chancellor would announce plans to include peer-to-peer lending within ISAs. Ahead of the Autumn Statement on 5 December, The Telegraph, The Times and Financial Times all covered the story. Although the Chancellor didn’t go on to announce it, we’re confident it will happen very soon and when it does, it will add a great deal of credibility to the industry.

Alternative financing draws in almost £1bn

The Financial Times covered Nesta’s latest report on alternative finance. Data compiled by the think-tank along with the universities of Cambridge and Berkeley in California, put the total value of this type of activity – which relies on online marketplaces bringing together investors and borrowers who want to bypass the banks – at £939m. Peer-to-business lending specifically, has grown by 211 per cent in the last year alone. What we are seeing now is not just the emergence of a challenger model but a fundamentally better method of borrowing and lending that will continue to grow in importance over the coming years. Reuters also covered the story.

The year that Britain discovered alternative finance

An interesting piece on Forbes looks at how the UK is leading the way in the world of alternative finance. With political and regulatory support, and growing demand for funding in a recovering economy, the industry’s growth is not surprising. The article also discusses the diverse nature of alternative finance on offer in Britain.

Leicestershire swelling Funding Circle’s ranks as county council makes £1m available to firms struggling to access finance

The Mail on Sunday announced our news that Leicestershire County Council have signed up as our latest partner in the Local Business Lending Partnership; a pioneering scheme to stimulate local economic growth and employment. Leicestershire Council have committed to lend £1 million to businesses in the region, the largest amount by any council to date. After a year of working with Lancashire Council, we have seen a 126% uplift in business lending within the region, and we’re hoping to see a similar effect in Leicestershire too.

Tech City UK announces final 25 high-growth start-ups for Future Fifty programme

And finally, the second batch of high growth start up firms identified for the Government’s Future Fifty programme were announced, and we were really excited to be included. The launch included a visit to the London Stock Exchange by our co-founders, Samir and James, where they met the Prime Minister and discussed how important technology firms will be in ensuring Britain’s place in the global economy.

Weekly Lending Review: week 2

Week 2: 6 – 12 January 2014

We’re back into the swing of things with 71 new lending opportunities listed last week, with more to come as we had one of our best weeks for submitted applications from potential borrowers.

We saw more businesses from the South East than any other region, and expansion was the most popular reason for needing funding.

New loans

There were 71 new business loans listed last week and there are currently 50 auctions on the marketplace.

The total value of the new listed loans was £3,688,500; that’s an average of £51,951 per loan. The largest loan value was £150,000 and the smallest loan value was £5,000.

Business loans still available for bidding on for the next 3 days or more:

Weekly marketplace trends

Weekly average gross yield (2 weeks rolling)

Number of listed loans per week

Listed loan value per week

Get the Funding Circle iPhone app

If you haven’t already done so, you can try out our first iPhone app for free, which is available to download on the App Store.

Community Discussions

This week we’re talking about buying and selling loan parts as an investment strategy. You can join the discussion on our community forum.

Loans defaulted last week

Marquee hire business. Loan ID 2268

This Retford business was established in 1989. We received notification of a change in the business’ circumstances in December. The original loan amount was £44,000 and all 593 investors have been notified. Our insolvency team are working to recover the outstanding amount.

Enjoy lending, The Funding Circle Team

£200 million lent. Weekly Lending Review: week 1

Week 1: 30 December 2013 – 5 January 2014

We’ve got 31 new lending opportunities and an update on our total lending all in this week’s Weekly Lending Review.

£2.8 million was lent out by our investors across the new year week, with £1.7m of new lending opportunities listed on the marketplace.

Happy New Year!

We kick off with news that we have just passed the £200 million lending milestone. Lending in 2013 alone reached nearly £130 million from investors across the UK, and an estimated 6,150 jobs have been created as a result of your lending this year.

It took 763 days to reach the first £50 million lent to businesses, 224 days to reach the second £50 million, and just 138 days to reach the third. Our aim for 2014 is to continue to grow and get even more finance to successful businesses across the country.

New loans

There were 31 new business loans listed last week and there are currently 12 auctions on the marketplace.

The total value of the new listed loans was £1,733,000; that’s an average of £55,903 per loan. The largest loan value was £150,000 and the smallest loan value was £15,000.

Business loans still available for bidding on for the next 3 days or more:

Scottish construction company is looking for a £32,000 loan

Automotive company in the Midlands needs a £80,000 loan

Aquatics business needs a £75,000 loan

Family run restaurant is looking for a £30,000 loan

Health and safety company in the South East needs a £50,000 loan

Weekly marketplace trends

These graphs show the most recent activity on the marketplace. The average gross yield graph is reported weekly and shows a rolling two week average. Number of loans, value of loans and secondary market are reported weekly. The dates on the graph should be read as ‘week beginning’, for example: 30-Dec represents the week of 30th December – 5th January.

News you should know about

A roundup of 2013 at Funding Circle in numbers

How your lending helped feed the masses with tasty homemade burgers

Get the Funding Circle iPhone app

At the end of last year we launched our first iPhone app, which is available to download for free on the App Store and will allow you to manage your portfolio on the go!

Community Discussions

This week we’re talking about making an investment from a Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP). You can join the discussion on our community forum.

Enjoy lending, The Funding Circle Team