SocietyOne announces record lending growth in 2017
Total lending has reached $350 million for the P2P lender since its first loan in 2012.
Peer-to-peer (P2P) lender SocietyOne has announced three lending milestones for 2017 with the year not even over yet, showing how Australians are embracing this innovative way to borrow and invest.
Peer-to-peer lending involves borrowing receiving funds from investors rather than directly from a bank or lender, with the peer-to-peer lending company acting as the intermediary to match borrowers with investors. Borrowers receive rates that are risk-based and can be as low as half that offered by bank unsecured personal loans. On the other side, investors can receive attractive rates by providing funds.
The concept seems to be working, with SocietyOne already surpassing the level of lending volumes for the whole of 2016. Its current loan book has reached $200 million for the first time in SocietyOne's history. Total lending since the company started operating in August 2012 has now topped $350 million.
This is a record for SocietyOne, as it has now originated more than twice the loans of the company's nearest competitor and had seven successive quarters of growth.
The first three-quarters of 2017 also saw a record amount of funding made available by investor funders. The total number of funders has risen to 320 since SocietyOne's inception and there is $61 million of committed available funding as at 30 September 2017.
Jason Yetton, CEO and managing director of SocietyOne said: “Our growth in 2017 underlines the demand from consumers for a real alternative to the major banks. Consumers are looking for a better deal on their finances and our risk-based pricing is attractive for customers that have demonstrated that they have a good credit history."
Of the $350 million that has been lent, $270 million has been assigned to consumer borrowers as personal loans and $80 million has been advanced to farmers through SocietyOne's secured livestock lending product. This product, introduced as a pilot in 2014, has proved a profitable part of the loan book.
“With a more dynamic approach to both comprehensive credit reporting and open banking on the horizon, Australians are becoming increasingly aware of the better choices now available,” Yetton said.
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