AROUND THE WORLD
On Thursday of last week Inside ARM reported on a recent FTC Forum titled, Peer-to-Peer Payments – Their Emergence and Path Ahead. Those among the panel all “…agreed that the consumer’s cost to use these payment systems was a significant benefit.” It was also reported that many members identified the speed of transactions as a critical advantage over traditional lending in underserved sections of the population.
On Wednesday of last week AltFi News published an article examining the changes occurring in the marketplace lending world. The author cites the growing trend of P2P lenders embracing more regulations. This voluntary action towards more stringent measures is a healthy sign of maturation in online lending. The author explains, “Marketplace lenders are taking steps on their own to improve the integrity of their business model and operations.”
PR Newswire wrote an interesting piece on a newly patent-pending technology designed for marketplace lending called ‘Planetary Unique Financial Instrument Number’ or PUFIN. This technology seeks “…to create free and global loan identifiers using blockchain technology, aims to deliver order and uniformity in a secure environment to the marketplace.” The system will be free and secure to avoid slowing adoption.
On Monday Bloomberg reported encouraging news about the health of some P2P lenders amid concerns about Brexit. The momentum of marketplace lending appears able to withstand the financial stress associated recession concerns amid the UK’s Brexit vote. UK citizens are still confidently investing cash into P2P opportunities even after the referendum outcome signaling that, “At first blush, Brexit hasn’t frightened off investors. In September, British platforms originated a record 364 million pounds in loans, a 30 percent jump over September 2015.”
On Friday, The Financial Times published an article on investor’s growing appetite for strong returns amid the tepid equities market. In discussing peer-to-peer lending, the author noted, “the asset class has so far delivered good returns to those investing directly in the loans, — its total return over 3 years has been of 15.86 percent, according to the Liberum Altfi Index.”
BONDORA MENTIONS
P2PBanking.com discussed our recent decision to open a new European office in Germany.
SMN Weekly discussed our announcement to spilt the interface into two entities, one for the investor, the other for the borrower.
