EX-ECB Official To Join Funding Circle Board

How does a company get street cred in the corporate hood? By hiring some big guys.

Today, Lending marketplace Funding Circle announced that it hired former Executive Board Member of the European Central Bank (ECB), Jörg Asmussen, to join the Funding Circle board.

This is latest of key hires made by alternative lending companies recently. Last month, stealth P2P insurance startup Lemonade hired famous behavioral economist, Dan Ariely, and ex-Deutsche Bank head Anshu Jain joined the SoFi board. And yesterday, deBanked wrote about lending platform LendKey hiring ex-treasury official Salil Mehta.

Asmussen is a German economist and policymaker and has held numerous high-profile positions within the public sector. From 2012 to 2013 he served as Executive Board Member of the European Central Bank (ECB), and from 2008 to 2012 he was State Secretary at the German Ministry of Finance, responsible for European Affairs and Financial Markets. Most recently, he was State Secretary for the German Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

Last year, Funding Circle acquired German lender Zencap, gaining a foothold in Europe, in countries like Germany, Spain and the Netherlands, along with its operations in the UK and US. In the four years of its existence, more than $2 billion has been lent on the Funding Circle marketplace to more than 15,000 businesses.

“Jörg is one of Germany’s most respected economists and has spent a lifetime shaping government and central banking,” said Matthias Knecht, co-founder and Managing Director of Funding Circle Continental Europe,  “As we accelerate our growth across Europe, his experience in European regulation and unique insights into the challenges faced by small businesses will be an invaluable asset.”

CB Insights and KPMG estimated the global investment in fintech companies to total US $19.1 billion in 2015, with US$13.8 billion invested into VC-backed fintech companies, a 106 percent jump compared to 2014. Backed by marquee investors, companies like SoFi and Lemonade have the muscle to make key hires.