Company Acquiring Funding Circle USA Had Previously Acquired Knight Capital and Assets of Fountainhead

iBusiness Funding, LLC, which is acquiring Funding Circle’s US arm, is no stranger to the small business finance industry. That’s because the company not only acquired select assets of Fountainhead SBF LLC last year, but its parent company, Ready Capital, had also acquired Knight Capital in 2019.

Ready Capital, a non-bank SBA lender, had also been one of the largest PPP lenders in the country during the pandemic. The designation of being an SBA lender is a highlight in the acquisition of Funding Circle because it means it does not need Funding Circle’s SBLC license to do SBA loans. Funding Circle had faced hostility by members of congress earlier this year for exploring a sale of its business only after it had lobbied for and finally secured an SBLC license. Now the matter is moot.

“As the Ready Capital group already holds an SBLC license, Funding Circle has, with SBA consent, surrendered its SBLC license,” the announcement by Funding Circle said. “The transaction is expected to close by the end of June.”

It was a share purchase agreement for a total cash consideration of £33 million ($42 million) which includes all of the company’s loan portfolios.

Funding Circle CEO Lisa Jacobs said, “We are pleased to have reached an agreement with iBusiness Funding, one of the leading processors of loans to US small businesses. In iBusiness, we have found a partner that shares in our mission, and we look forward to seeing the success of the combined entity.”

Ready Capital CEO Thomas Capasse said, “We’re excited to acquire FC USA and expect the acquisition to yield meaningful revenue and earnings to the combined company in the years to come.”

Founder and CEO of iBusiness Funding LLC Justin Levy said, “We are thrilled to welcome the exceptional FC USA team to the iBusiness family. FC USA’s mission to be the largest SBA lender for loans under $500,000 aligns with our goal to support underserved borrowers, the only difference is iBusiness achieves this goal through many SBA-approved lenders in our network.”