Peer-to-peer lender Linked Finance has rolled out a revamped website. The redesign formed part of a larger 10-month project involving a complete rebranding and technical redevelopment of company’s online lending platform following a €2.5 million investment secured last year for the expansion of its IT platform and employee based.
Launched in March 2013, Linked Finance has a lender base of over 11,000 people, bringing together Irish SMEs and members of the public who are looking to lend to businesses at competitive interest rates. The company has facilitated loans for over 350 Irish businesses and recently reached a milestone with over €10m in new funds now available for loans through its online platform.
With over 50 new lenders joining each day, the company is quickly becoming a major force in SME finance in Ireland. Most loans facilitated have been significantly over-subscribed by bids from lenders, which total over €16m to date – reflecting the high level of demand to lend to the Irish SME sector.
“We’re delighted with the results of the competition and the new design of our website,” Peter O’Mahony, CEO of Linked Finance. “The approach used is very much in line with Linked Finance’s own peer-to-peer model and has proved a very efficient and highly cost-effective way to tap into an enormous pool of design talent. It’s also allowed us to avoid some of the constraints of traditional design routes, which can be time consuming. It’s very much an approach we’d recommend to any company looking to revamp their online presence.
“SMEs are finding that traditional banks are slow to respond to their needs and are therefore increasingly exploring other options for finance, such as peer-to-peer lending. An added attraction is that lenders and borrowers become partners – it’s often the case that a number of lenders will already be customers of a business and will have an active interest in their success.”
The type of borrower Linked Finance’s lenders seek to provide finance to are businesses in operation for two years or more, with a turnover of in excess of €100,000 and that are growing and in need of capital.
To date, the average loan value provided through the platform is €28,000, typically over a three-year term. The average loan is financed by contributions from anywhere up to over 100 successful lender bids. Individual lenders have funds available ranging from anywhere between €100,000 to €50, with the average lender diversifying funds across approximately 12 different loans at interest rates of 5−15%.
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