British fintech Lendable reaches unicorn status
loanablethe London-based personal lending fintech, has achieved unicorn status.
The dynamic startup that launched in 2014 offers competitive and fast loans that are assessed using a flexible credit research system so users requesting a loan quote don’t have their credit score affected.
The platform has proven popular with customers, who according to review engine Feefo.com gave the company a 100% approval rating on services and response times. Lendable’s success is partly due to the fact that it can facilitate loans to those with less than perfect credit scores.
Currently backed by Goldman Sachs, fintech’s new unicorn status has guaranteed that its early-stage angel investors will enjoy a 250x return on investment. As a result, sources say new investors want to get in on the action.
According to reports, the valuation was an internal transaction which saw initial investors and employees cash in around £30 million in shares, together with the company’s backers who increased their stake.
Goodbody analyst John Cronin Recount P2P Finance News that the valuation was a “significant increase” for Lendable given the £500million value attached to the company when Balderton Capital conducted a secondary sale in 2018.
He said: “Notably, Lendable has only raised £4m in equity to date and recorded £15m in profit out of £32m in revenue in 2019. However, the next litmus test from a valuation perspective will take place as Lendable seeks to raise more institutional capital. for expansion purposes.
Loanable financing
Despite its unusual discretion in publicity in the press, Lendable has attracted the attention of several world-class investors. The latest public documents show:
- Glänzer’s stake in Lendable is now worth around £23m.
- Passion Capital partner Eileen Burbidge has partially liquidated her shares in previous sales, leaving a stake worth £355.5,000.
- Lendable co-founder Martin Kissinger owns about 15% of the company.
Due to its success, Lendable has raised just £4m in equity since launch and recorded a profit margin of £15m on revenue of £32.1m in 2019. This achievement positioned Lendable ahead of most of its European unicorn competitors such as Klarna, N26, Monzo and Revolut.
According to reports, Lendable, which uses institutional capital to fund its services, now issues a new loan every 30 seconds. With plans to expand into the US market, it is also rumored that it will launch a new credit card product. The fintech is considered an industry leader due to its rapidly growing sales, accelerated applications, and highly competitive pricing.
fintech innovation
Lendable is the brainchild of its CEO and Founder, Martin Kissinger, who created Berlin-based peer-to-peer lending fintech Lendico for Rocket Internet.
Kissinger made use of the large amounts of data available in the UK at a time when consumer lending was a growing industry. The result was a more efficient and faster service than most major peer-to-peer competitors such as Rateseter and Zopa.
Part of Lendable’s success can also be attributed to when it launched. The company started trading just before the Financial Conduct Authority tightened regulations for financial services firms. Kissinger said: “The FCA created a much stricter regime and more companies exited the market. It was interesting for us because there was a window of time where, if you already existed as a as a certified member, you could continue with your business and apply for authorization afterwards, it became much more difficult to enter this business after this deadline.
