Summary of a post.
Lending Works makes it £100 million - and counting!
This past week, Lending Works cemented its place as one of the UK’s biggest peer-to-peer lending platforms, surpassing the £100 million mark in terms of pounds lent. For a platform which is just over four years of age, it represents an impressive achievement, and underlines the consistent upward curve the company has enjoyed since the first consumer-to-consumer loan was facilitated on a rainy January Monday afternoon back in 2014.
Growth, sustainability and customer focused
This pattern of growth is underscored by the fact that it was only in March 2017 that Lending Works breached the £50 million barrier – itself a fine achievement after just three years of trading. Nevertheless, it is over the past 12 months that the platform has taken things to a new level, and this has translated into significant success – both in terms of loan volume, and a number of other metrics too.
Lending Works has a clear path to profitability, which demonstrates that a focus on growth has not come at the expense of long-term sustainability.
Meanwhile, closer to home, some 20,000 customers (over 16,000 borrowers and nearly 4,000 lenders) have benefitted from the excellent value and service offered by the platform, while every penny of capital and expected returns has been delivered to lenders to date – and on time, to boot. And with a number of new projects and partnerships in the pipeline, it’s little wonder that CEO Nick Harding is optimistic about what lies ahead for Lending Works.
“We’ve achieved some exciting milestones since opening our doors at Lending Works, but this definitely ranks as one of our finest moments,” he beamed. “The growth we’ve seen over the past year in particular has enabled us to stamp our mark on the peer-to-peer lending sector, yet we have done this while maintaining a stable and sustainable footing as we build for the future.
“We’re also very proud to have created a business that is changing financial services for the better. We set out to improve the experience that our customers have when getting a loan or making an investment, and with customer satisfaction that is higher than that of Apple or Amazon, I feel we are achieving our objective. Making over 20,000 people’s lives slightly better, brings a smile to our faces.”
Milestones aplenty
Plaudits on the customer-service front have been a feature of Lending Works’ brief history, with particular recognition coming at the Moneywise Customer Service Awards – widely regarded as the gold standard within financial services. Last June, Lending Works was awarded the honour of ‘Best Peer-to-Peer Platform for Savers’ for the second year in a row, while it simultaneously won the Highly Commended gong in the ‘Most Trusted Loan Provider’ category for a third successive year.
Lending Works can also lay claim to being the first P2PFA member to receive full authorisation from the FCA (October 2016), and, following that, the first to launch the new Innovative Finance ISA (February 2017). Since then, nearly £40 million has been lent via the Lending Works ISA, and this product will likely continue to underpin future growth – as will an emphasis on partnerships on the back of a fruitful collaboration with digital challenger Revolut, which launched last year.
And in a year when challenges such as GDPR and online protection are set to be thrust into the limelight, Harding is confident that Lending Works has all its bases covered, and is well placed to progress from strength to strength.
“It’s very pleasing to note the list of things we’ve accomplished, but it is also due reward for the resources we’ve invested into establishing solid foundations,” observes Nick. “We’ve put a lot of emphasis on recruiting experts in data science, IT, online security and customer service over the past two years, and each of these areas has played a significant role in strengthening our brand and driving growth.
“Being able to expand our business and unlock new channels of loan origination and investment capital from such a strong base leaves us well poised to make 2018 the best yet, and to really challenge the market leaders in the years to come.
“But for now, I’d just like to extend a huge thank you to our customers, and also our dedicated, hard-working team. It is very rewarding to share in the satisfaction of reaching this landmark with you all, and I look forward to enjoying many more in the future.“
Related articles:
A handy guide to the 2019 ISA season
How to stay safe online in 2018
Lending Works turns four!
Our website offers information about saving, investing, tax and other financial matters, but not personal advice. If you're not sure whether peer-to-peer lending is right for you, please seek independent financial advice, and if you decide to invest with Lending Works, please read our Key Lender Information PDF first.
As with all investments, your capital is at risk.
- Summary of a post.
- Summary of a post.
In line with our risk management framework, today we published our Q4 2019 performance update.
As a platform, we take great pride in all that we've achieved since opening our doors for business nearly six years ago. We’ve
Since opening our doors back in 2014, we’ve always prided ourselves on living and breathing two key principles at Lending Works: innovation, and putting the customer first in everything we do.
Featured
Wednesday’s Budget speech, coupled with the cut to Bank of England rates, represented a decisive response to the coronavirus. Here we analyse the impact it will have on mitigating disruption from Covid-19, along with the long-term implications of this significant fiscal stimulus.
Rumblings from the Treasury ahead of next week's Budget suggest tax grabs will be needed to fund increased spending, and it appears UK enterprise could be in the firing line. Here we articulate why targeting entrepreneurs and small business is ill advised.
In a difficult climate, customer acquisition and lead generation present stern challenges for UK retailers, and a great deal of marketing spend invariably gets directed towards getting feet through the door.
There is a variety of literature and research illustrating the importance of building brand loyalty, albeit with some degree of variance.
Over the last decade, there can be little dispute that the reputation of mainstream banks – and particularly the so-called ‘Big Four’ (HSBC, Barclays, Lloyds and RBS) – is at its lowest ebb.
The idea of peer-to-peer (P2P) lending is a simple one; you lend money to those who wish to borrow, with a view to receiving a great return for doing so.
Most popular
The 2019-20 ISA season has been a damp squib, with banks disinterested in attracting savers’ cash, rates cut, and the stock market in freefall. However, the emergence of the IFISA means alternatives beckon for those seeking a stable middle ground in terms of risk and reward.
In a decade of slow recovery, the rapid rise in asset prices has been the standout. But how sustainable has price growth been, and could we be in the midst of a bubble?
- Summary of a post.
Most people consider income tax to be a given, but in the UK it is barely two centuries old. In this article, we look at how this tax has developed over the years, and also why it is set to remain at the core of our tax system for many decades to come.
Open banking celebrated its second birthday last month, but has the ‘revolution for financial services’ that was promised actually come to pass? In this article, we look at the progress the initiative has made so far, and what the future holds in the face of high levels of scepticism.
On the face of it, a 'broken' energy market needed fixing, and the price caps introduced in early 2019 were heralded as the solution. But, one year later, have they actually helped consumers save?
Recent
The Lending Works Shield does not give you a right to a payment so you may not receive a pay-out even if you suffer loss. The Lending Works Trustee has absolute discretion as to the amount that may be paid, including making no payment at all. Therefore, investors should not rely on possible pay-outs from the Lending Works Shield when considering whether or how much to invest. For more information click here.