Commercial lending giant SMBC takes $30m stake in OakNorth

Plus a significant client win for OakNorth’s lending platform.

OakNorth’s lending platform business has sealed a significant client win in the form of commercial lending giant Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC), which comes with a nice bonus.

SMBC has also taken a $30m stake in OakNorth through a secondary purchase of shares in the lender.

The Japanese commercial lender manages over $2 trillion in assets and has deployed OakNorth’s credit intelligence software to boost its lending in the US and Asia, with a particular focus on improving its asset review process.

“SMBC continues to transform itself to adapt to changes in society and the economy,” said OakNorth co-founder Rishi Khosla announcing the deal.

“This partnership and investment is a clear demonstration of SMBC’s commitment to define the commercial banking model of the future and become the leading choice for businesses around the globe.”

Khosla explained that OakNorth’s tech would be used to analyse each of SMBC’s borrower’s data against those of its peers, and that the software would alert SMBC when a borrower might need extra attention.

“Like us, SMBC wishes to create a better borrowing experience for businesses,” the co-founder added.