LendInvest quits the Peer-to-Peer Finance Association (P2PFA)

The Peer-to-Peer Finance Association (P2PFA) has affirmed that LendInvest has left the self-regulatory body.

The move took after LendInvest’s declaration that it had no short-or medium-term plans to include an Article 36(H) (rules regarding an electronic operating platform) regulated platform to its venture offering.

The P2PFA said correspondence of LendInvest’s goal to pull back from the P2PFA with instantaneous impact had been obtained and the moneylender is not part of the association anymore.

The expert moneylender uncovered in its yearly report that it had cancelled its application to the FCA to work as a peer-to-peer lending platform, credit broking, and buyer credit business.

It included that while these FCA applications can be reopened at anytime, presently had no need for these authorisations.

Recently, the moneylender initiated a retail bond, which will constitute its fourth funding source, adding to its online investment platform, two funds and four financing lines.

The 5.25% fixed rate retail bond will be recorded on the London Stock Exchange and is particularly targeted to retail stockholders, even though institutions can contribute as well.

Christian Faes, co-founder and CEO of LendInvest, said: “As we continue to scale the business, we’re increasingly looking to diversify our funding model and expand our capacity to lend to underserved borrowers, as well as to create new entry points to an attractive asset class that suits a broader range of investors seeking competitive risk-adjusted returns.”

LendInvest’s leaving was declared as the P2PFA uncovered its members platforms’ second quarter performance.

Cumulative lending from member platforms attained £8.39bn in the second quarter of 2017, a slight drop on the £8.5bn lent the past quarter.

Anyhow, levels of new lending increased as compared to the second quarter of 2016, with £819m started in the second quarter of 2017 while £658m in the second quarter of the previous year.

“Comparing the performance of P2PFA platforms in the second quarter in 2017 with the same period in 2016 underscores the progress which peer-to-peer lending has continued to make,” according to thedirector of the P2PFA, Robert Pettigrew.

Robert disclosed that of the £819m originated, more than £478m had supported SMEs and real estate ventures.

Robert also stated: “The number of lenders and borrowers continues to rise, with more than 35,000 more investors participating than during the same period last year.”