Member Article

P2P lending volumes surpassed £8.3bn in Q1 this year

Some of the UK’s biggest peer-to-peer lenders have continued their steady growth after lending volumes increased again in the first quarter of 2017.

According to the Peer-to-peer Finance Association (P2PFA), lending from its nine members, including big-names such as Zopa, Funding Circle, LandBay, RateSetter, LendInvest, MarketInvoice, ThinCats, ThinCats and Lending Works, reached £1bn in the first quarter of this year.

The trade association claims that its members originated more than £636m in business loans alongside £368m for individuals between January and March this year.

It now means that its members have lent out a cumulative total of around £8.3bn, up from £7.3bn in Q4 2016 and £6.5bn in the third quarter of last year, once new member Folk2Folk’s lending has been subtracted from this quarter’s figures.

Robert Pettigrew, director of the P2PFA said the new figures highlighted the permanent shift towards alternative financing as the sector goes from strength to strength.

He said: “The growth in P2P lending volumes over the last three months highlights the success which platforms have secured in the market – delivering a permanent shift in the financial services landscape, and providing an attractive offering for investors and borrowers.”

Lending in the sector was dominated by the so-called big three, with Funding Circle lending out £328m followed by Zopa with £248m and RateSetter’s £210m worth of loans.

Pettigrew added: “At a time when macroeconomic uncertainty appears to be the prevailing narrative, more than £600m has been lent to businesses through peer-to-peer platforms in the last three months, with almost thirty-seven thousand businesses having a loan at the end of the period.

“It is clear that the ability of platforms to provide an offering responsive both to the aspirations of investors and the needs of borrowers has enabled a consistent pattern of growth which any sector would find attractive.”