Irish peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform, Linked Finance, has reached the milestone of having issued over €100m in loans to local SMEs.
Linked Finance has now provided more than 2,160 loans to local businesses in every county of the country. Companies using the platform see the end-to-end process from initial application, to receipt of funding taking as little as 24 hours.
Linked Finance says it offers Irish SMEs a refreshing alternative to the long waits and relentless form filling that have for too long defined business lending in Ireland.
The arrival of open banking initiatives related to EU Directive PSD22, will allow Linked Finance to further simplify the process of accessing business loans and the platform expects to be able to provide credit decisions within an hour by the end of the year.
With €100 million in funding already provided to local businesses and a growing list of clients, Linked Finance believes is poised for another period of significant growth. The company plans to double headcount at its Dublin headquarters and beyond in 2020.
The recruitment drive will see Linked Finance build out its sales organisation to bring the benefits of P2P lending to a wider SME audience across Ireland. Notable companies that have raised funding with Linked Finance in the past include Viking Splash Tours, The Rolling Donut, Lolly & Cooks, Murphy’s Ice Cream, Iconic Offices and the Irish Fairy Door Company.
Commenting on the €100m milestone, Minister for Finance and Public Expenditure and Reform Paschal Donohoe said, "Availability of credit is a key consideration for all businesses, and I am aware of the role peer to peer lending is playing in broadening competition in the SME finance market. I congratulate the team at Linked Finance for hitting the milestone of €100m of lending and for helping over 2,100 Irish companies with capital to fund their growth."
CEO of Linked Finance, Niall Dorrian added, "The fact that over €100m has been lent on the platform is clear evidence that Linked Finance is now seen as an attractive source of funds for ambitious Irish SMEs. Our ability to deliver quick decisions through a simple, user-friendly application process has already proven extremely popular with business owners.
It took us almost 5 years to reach our first €50 million in lending. Now, a little over a year later, we’ve hit the €100 million milestone. This rapid rate of growth is a clear indication that our model is gaining real traction and why we plan to double our headcount in 2020."
Source: www.businessworld.ie
