Funding Circle, a digital platform for small business lending, is gearing up to launch an IPO which could see the business valued at £2 billion.The fast-growing FinTech, which launched in 2010, connects SMEs looking for finance directly with investors seeking returns.
The plans for a £300 million floatation on the London Stock Exchange this autumn were confirmed in a registration document filed this morning. Funding Circle plans to offer 25 per cent of its shares.
Its debut sale is being anchored by Anders Povlsen, a Danish billionaire with a stakeholding in Asos, who has agreed to buy 10 per cent of shares through his investment company Heartland.
The registration document claims that the platform has facilitated more than £5 billion in loans to over 50,000 SMEs with the backing of 80,000 investors, with over £1 billion of lending in the first half of 2018, with its key markets in the UK and US.
The filing states that Funding Circle makes use of “cutting-edge technology, proprietary credit models and sophisticated data analytics” to enable borrowers to apply for finance in minutes and receive a decision within 24 hours.
Revenue growth at the company in the first half of 2018 was up 62 per cent from the first half of 2017, excluding property loans, and the filing stated that Funding Circle had in excess of £2.5 billion loans under management in the first six months of 2018.
A spokeswoman for Funding Circle confirmed the company’s plans for a floatation but declined to comment further.
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