Articles by deBanked Staff
Has PayPal Eclipsed OnDeck in Small Business Loans?
April 26, 2019It’s been said that Kabbage is on pace to surpass OnDeck in small business loan originations, but PayPal has already done it. When PayPal announced a working capital program in the Fall of 2013, few were predicting that the initiative would propel them to the top of the small business lending charts. Just two years […] |
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< 5% Annual Returns On Small Business Loans?
April 25, 2019If you were to invest in small business loans with 4-year terms, what kind of return would you hope to get? Retail investors that put their money in a mix of high-risk and low-risk loans on Funding Circle’s UK platform should expect to achieve a return of 4.5% to 6.5% a year (after defaults and […] |
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Former Award Winning Fintech Journalist Tied To Shuttered Crypto Exchange in Hong Kong
April 25, 2019When a cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong was Court ordered into liquidation last month, few people in the US had any bitcoins at risk. But a familiar name resurfaced, George Popescu, the owner of Lending Times, the award winner for best journalist at Lendit Fintech’s 2017 conference in New York City, and the subject of […] |
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More Than Half of Small Businesses Seek Less Than $100,000 in Financing
April 22, 2019Small businesses need capital in small doses. That’s a takeaway of the latest study published by the Federal Reserve that revealed 57% of employer firms (with less than 500 employees) that applied for financing in 2018, sought $100,000 or less. 20% sought less than $25,000. 56% of all financing applicants said they applied in order […] |
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Small Businesses Rank Online Lenders More Transparent Than Big Banks
April 16, 2019
When it comes to business loans, small businesses say online lenders are more transparent than big banks. Specifically, 15% of respondents to a Federal Reserve survey reported challenges with transparency experienced at big banks versus only 12% with online lenders. Small businesses also ranked big banks worse on credit decision wait times, application process difficulty, […]
Merchant Cash Advances Surpass Leasing As Goto Financing Option for Small Businesses
April 16, 2019
Financing products sought (of those that applied for any kind of financing in 2018) More small business applied for merchant cash advances in 2018 than they did leasing, factoring, or equity investments. That’s according to a recent Federal Reserve study of small businesses with less than 500 employees. Nine percent of applicants applied for merchant […]
Direct Lending Investments Had Over 950 Investors
April 16, 2019
Documents filed in a New York Supreme Court case by the receiver managing Direct Lending Investments (DLI), revealed that DLI had more than 950 investors worldwide with collective investments on the books totaling over $780 million. For those wondering what’s happened since word of the hedge fund’s shocking demise, Bradley D. Sharp of Development Specialists, […]
Lots of Tech Buzzwords, Scary Problems
April 16, 2019
advanced machine-learning, algorithms, big data, streamlined, technology, consumer-friendly A federal regulator cut through the shield of fintech buzzwords on Monday when it announced that a darling of online lending valued at $2 billion, failed to properly handle rudimentary loan practices. The lender is Chicago-based Avant, who reportedly settled with the FTC for $3.85 million. According […]
Kabbage Could Be Neck and Neck with OnDeck for Originations This Year
April 8, 2019
Kabbage funded $600 million in the first quarter of the year, putting it on pace to potentially overtake OnDeck in originations for 2019. OnDeck reported $658 million in originations just a quarter earlier to finish 2018. The two companies have been among the top three funders by origination volume on deBanked’s leaderboard since 2014. OnDeck […]
Funding Circle SME Income Fund to Consider Winding Down
April 6, 2019
The Funding Circle SME Income Fund (FCIF), a fund whose objective is to provide shareholders with a sustainable and attractive level of dividend income by lending, both directly and indirectly, to small businesses through Funding Circle’s platform, may soon be winding down. Earlier this week, the fund’s major shareholders expressed a desire to withdraw their […]
Indicted Loan Brokers Out On Bond, 1 Still in Custody
April 5, 2019
Four of the five loan brokers indicted in a fake business loan scam that tricked an Ohio resident out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in upfront fees, have been released on bond. Only one, a defendant by the name of Haki Toplica, remains in custody. All of the defendants have entered pleas of not […]
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Brendan Ross, Direct Lending Investments, and Others
April 2, 2019
A class action lawsuit has been filed in California against Direct Lending Investments, LLC (DLI), Brendan Ross, Bryce Mason, Frank Turner, Rodney Omanoff, and Quarterspot Inc. alleging breach of contract, breaches of fiduciary duty, aiding and abetting breaches of fiduciary duty, and fraudulent inducement. The claims are drawn from a series of revelations that have […]
Debt Settlement Mastermind of MCA Industry Finally Caves, Pleads Guilty to Criminal Charges
March 30, 2019
The mastermind that pioneered debt settlement in the merchant cash advance industry ended his career with a whimper last week. Sergiy Bezrukov pled guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud and Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering. Bezrukov has been in jail for two years awaiting trial, which had been repeatedly postponed because he kept on […]
Online Lender Offering “Incredible” Returns to Investors is Recording Massive Losses
March 29, 2019
StreetShares continues to rack up astronomical losses, according to the company’s recently filed unaudited financial statements. The company recorded a $6.4 million loss for the second half of 2018 on only $1.88 million in operating revenue. As in previous periods, payroll continues to be the largest expense. StreetShares’ funding comes in part from mom & […]
Tiny Small Businesses Struggle More Than the Rest
March 28, 2019
The average credit score of the owner of a “mom and pop” shop (a business with four or fewer employees) is 30 points lower than the owner of a larger business, according to a recent study conducted by Lendio. (Lendio defined a “mom and pop” business and having four or fewer employees). Furthermore, the study […]
What Did Direct Lending Investments Invest In?
March 27, 2019
When Bloomberg News reported that Direct Lending Investments (DLI) had lost approximately 25% of its portfolio value from a deal gone bad, some were surprised to learn that it had nothing to do with its core competency of online lending. VOIP Guardian Partners I, which stuck DLI with more than $190 million in unpaid loans, […]
Yalber Announces $20 Million Credit Facility
March 26, 2019
Amir Landsman, CEO, Yalber Yalber announced today that they have obtained a new $20 million credit facility from Park Cities Asset Management. Brean Capital served as exclusive financial advisor to Yalber on the transaction. This follows an earlier $20 million credit facility in December 2018 from a different investment fund. “The small business funding […]
Direct Lending Investments Charged With Fraud by the SEC
March 25, 2019
Update: DLI has agreed to the appointment of a receiver to marshal and preserve the assets of Direct Lending and the funds. The SEC has also published a press release on the matter. One of the biggest online lending hedge funds has been accused of fraud by the SEC. On Friday, the SEC sued Direct […]
New Jersey Bill Seeks to Eliminate Quick Easy Access to Small Business Loans
March 21, 2019
The speed at which a small business owner can access capital to grow and create jobs in New Jersey is too dangerous and must be stopped. This is the takeaway from a bill (S3617) proposed by New Jersey State Senator Nellie Pou that calls for a minimum 3-day waiting period between when contract terms are […]
Direct Lending Fund CEO Resigns, Investigation
March 20, 2019
In this dark blurry photo, Ross moderates an online lending panel in 2014 Direct Lending Fund CEO Brendan Ross, has resigned, according to Bloomberg News and numerous individuals identifying themselves as investors on an industry blog. The fund not only lost nearly 25% of its portfolio in a single sour investment, but it’s reported that […]
