In their 2014 annual return, marketplace lending provider, Funding Circle, reported solid growth on its platform as revenues rose 121% from £5.35 million to £11.85 million. The growth ultimately helped the firm grab a headline grabbing $150 million in new funding during April. The funding was viewed as integral to help boost its growth as despite strong revenues, the firm has been operating in the red, having generated a £10.85 million loss during 2014.
The negative operating cash flow though, appears to be a thing of the past as Funding Circle has revealed that it expects to post revenues in 2015 above £35 million. The positive trends occur as loan transactions have been accelerating on its platform this year.
$100 million a Month in Lending
Providing an update to Business Insider (BI), Funding Circle CEO and Co-Founder Samir Desai stated that the firm is currently lending $100 million a month on its platform, with over 25% originating from its US operation that was launched in Q4 2013. With already over £790 million lend to date on the platform, based on its current growth, the firm should be set to break the £1 billion barrier by mid-November of this year.
Commenting about its administrative expenses, which were over £20 million in 2014 and led to a loss last year, Desai explained that a large portion was in relation to the opening of its US operation. He added that its UK lending business is currently profitable, with trends in US also moving towards profitability.
Due to the revenue growth and turn to profitability, Desai also stated to BI that the firm has yet to use any of the recent $150 million in funding that was raised in April. He added, “We didn't really need the money but we thought it was prudent to take it. Obviously some of the investors we did bring on — BlackRock, Temasek, DST Global, Baillie Gifford, Sands Capital — don't come along everyday.”
