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ID Finance announces the launch of Mexico operations

By MPI24th September 2017News, Peer-to-Peer Lendingfintech, ID Finance, launch, Mexico, operations, peer-to-peer lending

ID Finance, the emerging markets fintech company, has expanded its presence in Latin America with a launch into the Mexican online lending market. The announcement comes less than a year after the company launched operations in Brazil and represents another key milestone as it continues its aggressive global expansion. Boris Batine, Co-founder and CEO at ID Finance, stated:

“It is an exciting time to be expanding our footprint in LatAm and we see enormous potential for online lending in Mexico. It is an important step towards becoming the number one alternative lender in the region.”

ID Finance explained that with a population of 127 million and 61percent of adults lacking a bank account according to World Bank, Mexico represents one of the largest opportunities for fintech in Latin America. Mexico’s low bank branch coverage – 14 branches per 100,000 inhabitants compared to 33 in the US – together with an underdeveloped transport infrastructure further exacerbates the need for fintech services. Yannick del Ponte, Country Manager at ID Finance Mexico, commented:

“The growth in internet usage and smartphone penetration is creating an enormous opportunity for fintechs. ID Finance’s unique scoring technology gives us a significant advantage over the competition while our Moneyman online lending product will bring much needed simplicity and transparency for consumers here in Mexico.”

ID Finance went on to note that Mexico is expected to have 91.6m active internet users by 2021 and 75.4m smartphone users by 2022. Proposed government reforms centred on financial inclusion, and upcoming regulatory changes are driving development of the sector.

ID Finance was founded in Russia in 2012 and has rapidly expanded into Kazakhstan, Georgia, Poland, Spain, Brazil and now Mexico. The company posted 82 percent revenue growth for the first half of 2017 and has 3.8 million registered customers. It issues over 60,000 loans each month with monthly revenue of $15 million.

The emerging markets fintech company ID Finance reports 82% revenue growth in first half of 2017

By MPI8th September 2017News, Peer-to-Peer LendingBrazilian, expansion, fintech, ID Finance, lending market, revenue growth

ID Finance, the emerging markets fintech company, has reported 82% revenue growth for the first half of 2017 following successful expansion into the Brazilian online lending market. The data science, credit scoring and digital finance company has now processed over 1 million loans and is planning further expansion in Latam with a launch expected in Mexico later this year.

ID Finance was founded in Russia in 2012 and has rapidly expanded into Kazakhstan, Georgia, Poland, Spain and Brazil. It uses both traditional and alternative sources of data to improve access to competitive financial services and helps customers build their credit profile over time in order to gain access to more financial products. The company reached profitability in 2015 and is now issuing over 60 000 loans each month with monthly revenue of USD 15 million.

“We are very happy with our revenue growth as we continue to execute the plan. We are particularly excited by the huge potential for competitive and convenient online lending in Brazil – we’re seeing stronger growth and a higher return on marketing spend in Brazil than we’ve seen in any other market so far,” comments Boris Batin, co-founder and CEO at ID Finance.

Brazil is attracting considerable interest among fintech companies for several reasons. Firstly, the banking sector has a small number of players and competition is limited. Secondly, there are 61 million people that are blacklisted from the traditional financial system. Thirdly, Brazil has the largest smartphone market by volume in Latam.

According to a recent report from Goldman Sachs, the top five banks in Brazil hold 84 per cent of total loans excluding development banks. Meanwhile in retail branch banking, the top five banks have 90 per cent of branches. By way of comparison, in the United States the top five banks hold just about 20 per cent of all branches. ID Finance partnered with Brazilian bank Socinal Financeira to overcome regulatory challenges and accelerate its launch.

“Our banking-as-a-service platform is proving highly effective. It allows us to focus on our core strengths of client capture and credit scoring, while Socinal Financeira takes on the back-office function and regulatory requirements,” comments Alexander Dunaev, Co-Founder and COO, ID Finance.

According to Goldman Sachs, Brazil has an estimated revenue pool of USD 24 billion for fintech companies over the next 10 years, with payments, lending and personal finance the most promising segments. The Latin American Private Equity and Venture Capital Association saw fintech companies in Brazil attract USD 113 million in venture capital in 2016, more than 10 per cent higher than the USD 102 million pledged in 2015 despite a broader decline in venture capital investment in Brazilian startups.

“ID Finance is one of the fastest-growing and fastest-moving online lenders globally. We have effectively built the digital infrastructure for online lending in six countries within just five years and we remain on track for our launch in Mexico this year,” continues Boris Batin, co-founder and CEO at ID Finance. “Our continued diversification across both geographies and products means we are confident in revenue growth and over 80 per cent of our revenue will be from outside of Russia by the end of 2019.”

EUR 300 million invested through Mintos

By MPI6th September 2017News, Peer-to-Peer Lendinginvestment, milestone, Mintos, peer-to-peer lending

Mintos has reached a new milestone – EUR 300 million has been in invested through the marketplace. More than EUR 200 million has been invested in 2017 alone, making Mintos a clear market leader in continental Europe with a 40% market share, according to AltFi Data.

In other words, about EUR 1 million is invested in loans through Mintos daily. To put that in perspective, this is three times more than just a year ago. Mintos is growing fast, and this growth is reflected in the rapid expansion on both sides of the marketplace.

On the investor side, about 2 000 new investors join Mintos each month. As of the end of August 2017, there were more than 32 000 investors from 64 countries on the Mintos marketplace.

On the supply side of the marketplace, there are 27 loan originators from 14 countries. This makes Mintos the world’s largest marketplace of its kind. The first loan originator from Africa just joined the marketplace, making it the third continent from which Mintos offers loans.

Creditstar offers loans granted in the Czech Republic on Mintos marketplace

By MPI1st September 2017News, Peer-to-Peer LendingCreditstar, Czech Republic, Mintos, peer-to-peer lending, personal loans, Short-term loans

Creditstar Group is strengthening its presence on the Mintos marketplace by offering short-term and personal loans granted in the Czech Republic. Loans will be listed both in euro (EUR) and Czech koruna (CZK).

Creditstar is one of the leading non-bank lenders in Europe, offering unsecured consumer loans in eight countries. The Czech Republic is the third Creditstar country, alongside Poland and Spain, that will have loans on the Mintos marketplace. To date, Creditstar loans worth more than EUR 8.4 million have already been financed through the Mintos marketplace.

Czech Republic-issued Creditstar loans on the Mintos marketplace will range from CZK 1 000 to CZK 19 000, with a repayment period of up to three months. The average net annual return to investors will reach 12%.

Creditstar will offer a buyback guarantee for loans that are delinquent for more than 60 days. The obligations of Creditstar Czech will be guaranteed by Creditstar Group. To retain its skin in the game, Creditstar will keep at least 5% of each loan on the Mintos marketplace on its balance sheet.

The company puts a strong emphasis on responsible lending policies and individual customer service. The typical Creditstar client is an active, young male, 26-35 years old, living in a small town. Creditstar has a strict credit policy – only around 30% of applications are accepted. Debt collection companies are involved in the recovery of non-performing loans.

The company is headquartered in Estonia, where Creditstar is a market leader with a 40% market share. Creditstar has established subsidiaries and provides services in Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The total number of active customers throughout the Creditstar Group currently exceeds 272 000.

The aggregate loan portfolio of Creditstar Group was EUR 52 million as of June 2017. The company has EUR 13.1 million in equity and EUR 58.8 million in assets. Creditstar has been profitable each year since its founding in 2006. Last year, it generated EUR 1.6 million in net profits.

At the beginning of the year, Creditstar Group was also selected as one of 10 Ruban d’Honneur recipients for the ELITE Award for Growth Strategy of the Year in the 2016/17 European Business Awards. Creditstar was one of only 110 finalists announced; over 33 000 businesses participated in the competition. The panel of independent judges praised Creditstar for its strong growth and core values of innovation, ethics, and success.

New loans for investment from ID Finance in Georgia

By MPI29th August 2017News, Peer-to-Peer LendingGeorgia, ID Finance, marketplace, Mintos, peer-to-peer lending, personal loans, skin in the game

ID Finance has further diversified investment opportunities on the Mintos marketplace by adding personal loans issued in Georgia under its Solva brand. Solva is a fully-owned ID Finance subsidiary in Georgia. It has disbursed 28 000 loans worth EUR 12 million since beginning operations in late 2016.

ID Finance joined Mintos in March 2017, offering investors the opportunity to invest in personal unsecured loans issued in Spain.

“We are pleased to expand cooperation with the Mintos marketplace. Solva is an innovative product in global online lending. It was developed for prime clients and offers attractive terms of personal loans. Solva closely approximates conventional bank loans with additional focus on transparency, ease and convenience of service. Thanks to our technological innovation and efficient business model, we can offer investors a high annual net return,” says ID Finance co-founder and CEO, Boris Batine.

The average Georgia-issued loan ID Finance will place on the Mintos marketplace will be EUR 1000, with a repayment period of up to 12 months. Investors will be able to invest in Georgian lari and in euro. The annual net return offered to investors will reach 16%.

The loan originator will offer a buyback guarantee for loans that are delinquent for more than 60 days. In July 2017, the share of non-performing Solva loans was 4%.

To retain its skin in the game, ID Finance will keep at least 10% of each loan available on the Mintos marketplace on its balance sheet.

Solva’s key innovation is its unique scoring system. The company’s decision-making system is built around machine learning, probabilistic risk assessment techniques, multiple search technologies, big data and text mining. The system also evaluates the device on which the application is being filled out and the user’s behaviour when filling out the application. These techniques support a positive decision on granting loans to users who are usually denied loans by banks.

ID Finance group is a fast-growing data science, credit scoring and digital finance provider that is pioneering fintech in emerging markets. The company was established in 2012; it is now the largest online consumer lender in CIS region and a leading one in Europe. Headquartered in Barcelona, the company operates in Spain, Kazakhstan, Georgia, Poland, Russia and Brazil, and plans to boost its presence in Latin America in the near future.

ID Finance has over 3.8 million registered customers, and more than 1.126 million loans worth USD 240 million have been issued to date. In 2016, ID Finance issued loans worth USD 92 million and generated USD 68 million in revenue, a 222% y-o-y growth. The company has been profitable since 2015.

ID Finance has received high praise in the industry, including many prestigious awards. In 2017, it was named the Fastest Growing Alternative Finance Company in Europe 2017 by Global Banking & Finance Review magazine.

Invest in new loans offered by ID Finance, and be sure to add ID Finance loans issued in Georgia to your Auto Invest portfolio.

ExpressCredit decreases bond nominal value for EUR 250 000

By MPI29th August 2017News, Peer-to-Peer Lendingbond, decrease, ExpressCredit, issue, prospectus

According to SIA ExpressCredit bond issue prospectus ISIN LV0000801280, as of 25/08/2017 nominal value of one security is going to be decreased by EUR 50. Total nominal value of bonds issue will be decreased for EUR 250 000. After settlement nominal value of one security (ISIN LV0000801280) will be EUR 250.

According to bond issues prospectus ISIN LV0000801280, 5 000 bonds were issued with an original nominal value of 1 000 euros. Yearly interest rate of the coupon is 14% with a 5 year term and gradual repayment of the nominal value.

ID Finance and Da Vinci Capital launch $200m fintech fund

By MPI29th August 2017News, Peer-to-Peer Lendingasset management, Da Vinci Capital, fintech fund, ID Finance

ID Finance has joined forces with former Elbrus Capital fund manager Yuri Popov and asset management company Da Vinci Capital to launch FinTech Credit Fund, a $200m debt finance fund aimed at financial technology companies with a focus on alternative lending.

FinTech Credit Fund will offer debt finance to companies looking to scale and will cover loans to the companies themselves, as well as financing of their loan portfolios. The duration of the agreement will range from six months to three years.

“The vast majority of money going into fintech is chasing a small number of well-known startups. There are many more high quality fintech companies all over Europe, some of which are performing extremely well, that are seeking capital to scale,” comments Boris Batine, Co-Founder and CEO at ID Finance. “We see a huge opportunity to support these companies while providing a superior risk adjusted return to investors.”

The Fund will initially focus on projects within the CIS and European markets. Funding will be provided to companies involved in consumer and SME lending, and both balance sheet and marketplace (p2p) lenders will be eligible. Projects offering analytical solutions for credit scoring based on Big Data, AI and machine learning, as well as SaaS and PaaS solutions and payment services are of particular interest to the Fund and align with the investors’ areas of expertise.

Investment decisions will be made following assessment of a number of criteria including: a company’s creditworthiness, the strength of their business model and technology, the quality of their loan portfolios, and risk and revenue potential.

“ID Finance and Da Vinci Capital will provide a solid investment process and infrastructure for the Fund as well as access to our broad network of institutional and private investors. Our expertise in fintech and alternative lending at an international level will also help to reduce credit risks,’” added Oleg Zhelezko, Managing Partner, Da Vinci Capital.

“The lack of access to the capital market is a key factor hampering the growth of the financial industry. The access to capital markets is often open only to large companies. Similar problems are experienced by companies around the world. FinTech Credit Fund seeks to meet the need of fintech companies in the sources of constant capital for their further development,” said Yury Popov, Managing Director, FinTech Credit Fund.

ID Finance is one of the fastest growing and fastest moving online lenders globally. The balance sheet lender was founded in Russia in 2012 and has rapidly expanded into Kazakhstan, Georgia, Poland, Spain and Brazil.

“We see a huge opportunity to back the billion-dollar companies of tomorrow focused on digital lending,” continues Alexander Dunaev, Co-Founder, ID Finance.

About the global FinTech industry

The main drivers of the growth of the Fintech industry are the change in consumer preferences of the millennium generation, innovative technology and products, the development of market infrastructure, the increase in penetration and development of telecommunications services, the spread of APIs and the reduction in the cost of attracting users. The banking industry is at the greatest risk of change from the fintech companies. According to Accenture Banking 2020 report, by 2020, fintech companies will deprive banks of a third of revenue, and traditional banking services will become easily replaceable by the services of technology-oriented Internet-centric players. According to Preqin, funds attracted annually to direct lending funds for alternative lending industry, have increased tenfold over the last ten years to $ 21 billion in 2016.

Atlantis Financiers Join Viventor peer-to-peer lending marketplace

By MPI21st August 2017News, Peer-to-Peer LendingAtlantis Financiers, Factoring, Invoice Financing, Netherlands, p2p, p2p lending, Viventor

Atlantis Financiers from The Netherlands have joined Viventor.

Established in 2013, Atlantis Financiers are one of the biggest non-bank invoice financing and factoring solution providers for Dutch and Belgian businesses. Since inception, the company has serviced over 2’500 SMEs in the region, financing over EUR 20’000’000 worth of invoices.

“When we think about our services, we think of solutions that are customisable, flexible and online-based. As we see it, these are some of the core values that modern small and medium enterprises are looking for when thinking of financing solutions. We’re very happy to partner with Viventor, as our solutions have incorporated the same core values,” states Lex Gielen of Atlantis Financiers.

Atlantis Financiers invoices on Viventor marketplace

300-30000 EUR in size
30-120 days duration
6%-14% projected annual return
90 day Buyback guarantee + Invoice Insurance

Atlantis Financiers offer invoice financing solutions with Advance Rate between 30% and 80% (percentage of invoice paid out by the factoring company up front). Moreover, every single deal has been insured with such trusted insurance companies as Euler Hermes (member of Allianz Group) or Atradius.

Given the levels of Advance Rate, insurance and Buyback Guarantee provided, investments in invoices factored by Atlantis Financiers are very conservative.

Update your AutoInvest settings by including Atlantis Financiers now. Remember to include Invoice Financing as a loan type, and Netherlands as a country!

Loans issued in Africa now available on the Mintos marketplace

By MPI21st August 2017News, Peer-to-Peer LendingAfrica, Botswana, GetBucks, Mintos, MyBucks, peer-to-peer lending, Short-term loans

GetBucks has started placing short-term personal loans issued online in Botswana on the Mintos marketplace. With this move, GetBucks is the first loan originator on the Mintos marketplace to offer an opportunity to invest in loans issued in one of the fastest growing regions of the world — Africa.

GetBucks, part of Frankfurt-listed fintech company MyBucks, joined the Mintos marketplace in June 2017, offering investors the opportunity to invest in short-term personal loans issued in Poland. So far, the company has funded loans worth more than EUR 400 000 through Mintos.

Tim Nuy, Deputy CEO of MyBucks, says: “We initially approached Mintos as a practical and flexible solution to our funding needs in Europe. So far, the Mintos platform has given us great results, with excellent investor demand.”

“The outcome was so good, we thought it would be great if we could find similar solutions for our successful African operations,” says Nuy. “Some African markets are not too different from many Eastern European countries. Botswana, for example, has a very stable economy with a GDP per capita of over USD 16 000. Loan impairments there are much lower than in most Eastern European markets.”

“We are glad to partner with Mintos in this initiative to allow European investors to participate in the African consumer finance business. We are confident that it will be as successful as it has been in Poland.”

The average Botswana-issued loan GetBucks will place on the Mintos marketplace is EUR 250, with a repayment period of 30 days. The average annual net return to investors will reach 11%.

GetBucks will provide a buyback guarantee for loans that are delinquent for more than 60 days, and will keep at least 5% of each loan available on the Mintos marketplace on its balance sheet. Obligations of GetBucks Botswana will be guaranteed by MyBucks Group.

The subsidiary GetBucks acquired in Botswana was established in 1998 and provides short-term unsecured loans. The company has already disbursed more than 120 000 loans worth more than EUR 19 million, most of them for consumption and education.

MyBucks Group has experienced exponential growth since its inception in 2011. Through its different brands, the company offers customers unsecured consumer loans, banking solutions and insurance products.

MyBucks Group operates in 12 countries across three continents – Africa, Europe and Australia. The company currently has four banking licenses and employs over 1 000 people. It has disbursed more than 1 million loans since inception. MyBucks now has a loan portfolio of almost EUR 100 million; it had a record year in 2016 when the company disbursed EUR 124 million in loans.

The Luxembourg-registered MyBucks group is the first African fintech company to be listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. It is also the first fintech company in Africa to provide savings products. In 2017, the company successfully listed bonds on the Vienna, Botswana and Zimbabwe stock exchange. It now has plans to list bonds in several other jurisdictions.

Over the last four years, MyBucks group’s revenues have grown fivefold to reach EUR 66.3 million, as of the end of June 2017. The company’s operating profit has grown over 30% in the past year to EUR 15.6 million.

GetBucks has developed unique credit-scoring technology with self-learning algorithms that allow the company to keep a default rate below 8%. The company distributes its product portfolio through digital channels and internet service points, which has allowed it to scale rapidly while also managing its credit risk effectively.

If you would like to invest in loans issued by GetBucks and use Auto Invest on the Mintos marketplace, be sure to adjust your settings accordingly and add GetBucks to your Auto Invest loan originators’ list!

Mogo adds loans from Bulgaria to the Mintos marketplace

By MPI21st August 2017News, Peer-to-Peer LendingBulgaria, car loans, Mintos, Mogo, Mogo Group, peer-to-peer lending

Non-bank car loan provider Mogo continues strengthening its presence on the Mintos marketplace by adding Mogo car loans issued in Bulgaria to its offering to investors. Bulgaria is the sixth Mogo Group market represented on Mintos.

Mogo is one of the top loan originators on the Mintos marketplace. Mogo joined Mintos in March 2015, and has since funded car loans worth EUR 56 million through the marketplace. To date, the average net annual return offered for Mogo loans has been above 12%.

The new loans Mogo will place on the Mintos marketplace will range from EUR 500 to EUR 10 000, with a repayment period of up to 72 months. The average net annual return to investors will range from 8 to 14%.

Loans with and without the buyback guarantee will be offered. Mogo Group has committed via a Letter of Comfort to provide additional intragroup funding to Mogo Bulgaria, if its needed to meet obligations to investors.

To retain its skin in the game, Mogo will keep at least 5% of each loan placed on the Mintos marketplace on its balance sheet.

With a total of more than EUR 300 million in loans originated since the company was founded in 2012, Mogo Group is the largest non-bank car loan provider in the region, with operations in Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Georgia, Poland, Bulgaria and Romania. Mogo started operations in Bulgaria in March 2017. To date, car loans worth EUR 800 000 have been issued.

The typical Mogo customer is an economically active person with a stable income for whom comfort, mobility and time are important factors in their daily life.

The aggregate net loan portfolio of Mogo Group was EUR 80 million as of June 2017. It has EUR 12 million in equity and EUR 90 million in assets. Mogo Group has demonstrated consistent profitability. Last year, it generated EUR 6 million in net profit and projects to generate about EUR 10 million in net profit in 2017. Mogo Group is audited by PwC.

Mogo Group currently employs more than 200 people, while the number of active customers exceeds 35 000. See more information about the performance of Mogo Group in this presentation.

If you use Auto Invest on the Mintos marketplace and want to invest in Mogo loans issued in Bulgaria, make sure to adjust your Auto Invest settings accordingly.