Zopa, the world’s original peer-to-peer lending business, has now lent over £2bn to consumers since launching way back in 2005. The company has lent over £700m in the last 12 months alone – a period of pronounced difficulty for many within the marketplace lending space globally.
Zopa has established a number of monthly origination records in recent months, and while small business lender Funding Circle is nipping at its heels, it remains the largest player within the UK’s peer-to-peer lending sector.
Over 300,000 loans have been packed into the £2bn originated by Zopa, with more than 75,000 investors and 246,000 borrowers connecting via the platform over the last 12 years.
After more than a decade of lending to consumers, Zopa announced in November of last year that it would be launching a digital-only bank, and is in the process of applying for a banking licence. Should this succeed, Zopa will join a growing band of digital-only disruptors with banking licences, which includes the likes of Starling Bank,Atom Bank and Monzo bank.
“Over the last 12 years, we’re proud to say we’ve helped over a third of a million people get better interest rates for both borrowing and lending,” said Zopa’s CEO Jaidev Janardana (pictured above). “The £2bn milestone demonstrates how far we have come, but our journey is only just getting started. Our decision to launch a next generation bank reflects our mission to create better options for consumers and to shape the future of finance.”
Some added perspective on Zopa's achievements from AltFi Data below...
