Zopa Raises More than $57 Million to Support Next Generation Bank

Zopa Raises More than $57 Million to Support Next Generation Bank

P2P lending pioneer Zopa has raised more than $57 million in funding (£44 million) to support the launch of its challenger bank. The financing represents the first part of its current fundraising round, according to a post at the company blog, and comes amid reported strong growth for the sector and the company – including full-year profitability in Zopa’s P2P business in 2017.

The company’s intention to join the challenger bank revolution was signaled when it applied for a banking license in 2016. With growing concern from regulatory authorities such as the Financial Conduct Authority over the appropriateness of loan-based crowdfunding and P2P lending as an investment for average investors, adding retail deposits via a challenger bank would provide additional funding support for Zopa’s operations.

And while the bank would be initially limited to savings products like deposit accounts, Zopa expects credit and unsecured debt products to follow soon thereafter. “We aim to be the best place for money in the U.K. and we believe that launching our bank is a key next step,” Zopa CEO Jaidev Janardana said. “It allows us to offer a wider choice of products and to help our customers make smarter choices with their money.”

Named to the Financial Times’ FT 1000 list of Europe’s fastest growing companies, Zopa announced a major milestone in February, when its investor community lent its three billionth pound to U.K. customers. Re-opening to new investors at the beginning of the year, Zopa also started 2018 by beefing up its executive ranks. The company added new Chief Financial Officer, Steve Hulme; Chief Risk Officer, Phillip Dransfield; and Chief Customer Officer, Clare Gambardella.

London, U.K.-based Zopa has now raised a total of more than $169 million in funding. The company’s investors include Bessemer Venture Partners, Northzone, Augmentum Capital, and Wadhawan Global Capital. Zopa is one of Finovate’s earliest alums, having demonstrated its platform at FinovateSpring 2008.

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  • Zopa Raises More than $57 Million to Support Next Generation Bank.
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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Zopa’s Record Lending Figures Suggest a Healthy U.K. P2P Lending Sector

Zopa’s Record Lending Figures Suggest a Healthy U.K. P2P Lending Sector

P2P lending platform Zopa not only announced its move back into profitability, it also released a handful of metrics suggesting growth sustainability in the P2P industry.

After the U.K.-based company was founded in 2005, it reached profitability in 2011 and continued that momentum until 2012. Five years later, and after a bit of restructuring, Zopa achieved revenues of $61 million (£46.5 million) in 2017. This represents 40% year-over-year growth from the company’s 2016 revenues of $23.5 million (£33.2 million).

The company attributes the growth to its increased focus on tech innovation, especially offering instant feedback on loan approvals, as well as its efforts to expand its customer base through partnerships. The boost in growth is also thanks to a rise in loan volumes. In 2016, the company lent out $906 million (£690 million) and last year increased it’s loan volume by 43% to $1.3 million (£985 million).

In a press release Zopa CEO Jaidev Janardana said, “2017 was a landmark for us. We’re proud to see the company’s efforts reflected in our record lending figures, profitability and strong customer growth…. We’ve invested significantly in technology, in our proprietary back office infrastructure, and in our people, all of which have helped Zopa to continue to scale and grow sustainably.”

Some of those investments Janardana alluded to include the announcement of plans to launch a challenger bank; receiving full FCA authorization in May of last year; and, in 2018, restructuring the company with the appointment of a trio of new C-level hires. Helping to sustain this growth is a $41 million investment the company received about a year ago from Wadhawan Global Capital of India and Northzone.

These positive revenue figures as well as the increase in loan growth allude to the health of the overall P2P lending sector in the U.K. In fact, the U.K. P2P Finance Association (P2PFA) reports that, since the second quarter of 2017, growth in the U.K.-based P2P lending sector has a whole has increased more than 40% from $8.4 billion (£6.4 billion) to $11.7 billion (£9 billion) in the first quarter of 2018.

Much of this growth, the organization described, is thanks to an uptick in business borrowing. This may explain the region’s difference compared to the U.S., where P2P lending has fallen slightly out of favor– thanks to a decrease in both lenders and investors, as well as recent regulatory scrutiny. To let numbers speak for themselves, Lending Club’s market cap has fallen from $9.3 billion at its peak in 2015 to its current $1.6 billion.

Zopa’s former CEO Doug Dolton debuted the P2P lending platform at FinovateSpring 2008 at Finovate’s very first show in the Bay Area. Zopa co-founder Giles Andrews is now CEO. Last spring, the company unveiled its latest offering, the Innovative Finance ISA, the first tool to expand the company’s focus into broader banking products. Earlier this spring, Zopa ranked 278 on the FT 1000, the Financial Times’ list of the fastest growing companies in Europe.

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Zopa Boosts Executive Ranks with Trio of C-Level Hires

Zopa Boosts Executive Ranks with Trio of C-Level Hires

En route to its launch of a next generation challenger bank later this year, P2P lender Zopa is staffing up its executive ranks. The company announced today that it was appointing a new Chief Financial Officer, Chief Risk Officer, and Chief Customer Officer.

At the post of CFO, Steve Hulme comes to Zopa after a stint as CFO for Tandem Money. Previous to Tandem Money, Hulme was CFO for PayPal’s global credit business and CFO for Capital One’s business in the U.K. and Canada. He was educated at the University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, earning a BA in Geography.

Taking the helm as Chief Risk Officer is Phillip Dransfield. With a Masters in Commerce, Finance, and Banking from UNSW and a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Statistics from the University of Wollongong, Dransfield held executive positions at TSB Bank and Lloyds Banking Group.

Zopa also hired a new Chief Customer Officer to start the new year. Clare Gambardella previously worked in a number of capacities for Virgin Active, and ended her tenure at the health club, gym, and spa network as Chief Marketing Officer. Also a veteran of the Boston Consulting Group, Gambardella was educated at the University of Cambridge, where she earned a degree in English Literature.

“We’re delighted to have three high profile and exceptionally talented people join the business,” Zopa CEO Jaidev Janardana said. “Our people are our biggest competitive advantage and these additions further strengthen our position.”

Along with the $41 million (£32 million) investment the company picked up last summer, the new hires are part of the preparation for the launch of Zopa Bank. The challenger bank will offer customers personal and auto loans, flat rate credit cards, and savings and investment products. “We’re uniquely placed to make the next generation bank a leader in consumer finance combining our customer-centric culture, agile technology and data excellence with a track record of loan origination and risk management,” Janardana wrote in a blog post last fall. “No other provider has this combination of attributes.”

Zopa made its Finovate debut in 2008. The London-based company* was founded in 2005 and has raised more than $112 million in funding. Named to the European Fintech 100 and ranked in the Inc. 5000, Zopa partnered with fellow Finovate alum Aire last fall and opened a new development center in Barcelona, Spain last summer.

*Updated to reflect Zopa headquarters in London.

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

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This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alums Earn Spots in European Fintech 100

Finovate Alums Earn Spots in European Fintech 100

Powered by collaborative Belgian innovation platform, B-Hive, and Dutch financial consulting firm, Alex van Groningen BV, the European Fintech Awards & Conference recognize fintech innovators working in a variety of areas ranging from the Blockchain/Bitcoin and Financial Inclusion to InsurTech and Payments.

The awards consist of a European Fintech 100 and a Top Three which will be selected from among the top three startups in each of the conference’s nine categories during a pitch contest at the end of September. Here are the Finovate alum finalists who will compete for top honors in their respective categories this fall.

Dorsum (FinovateEurope 2017)

  • Category: Innovative Banking Software
  • Founded in 1996
  • Headquartered in Budapest, Hungary
  • Róbert Kő is CEO and Founder

Meniga (FinovateEurope 2017)

  • Category: PFM / Robo Advisory
  • Founded in 2009
  • Headquartered in London, U.K.
  • Won Finovate Best of Show three times
  • Georg Ludviksson is CEO

Revolut (FinovateEurope 2015)

  • Category: Challenger Banks
  • Founded in 2013
  • Headquartered in London, U.K.
  • Nikolay Storonsky is CEO and founder

TWINO (FinovateEurope 2016)

  • Category: Alternative Finance
  • Founded in 2015
  • Headquartered in Riga, Latvia
  • Jevgenijs Kazanins is CEO

Below are the Finovate alums that have been named to the European Fintech 100.

 

 

 

 

See the full European Fintech 100 list.

Interested in fintech in Europe and the U.K.? Finovate brings its new, expanded format to London in February. With live demos on Days One and Two, and a diverse range of keynotes, panel discussions, and round tables with fintech professionals on Days Three and Four, FinovateEurope 2017 is an event you won’t want to miss. Visit our FinovateEurope page today to learn more and to take advantage of huge early-registration savings.