Marketplace lending

In order for the financial services industry to achieve its full potential in the digital age, Silicon Valley must work together with banks and lawmakers to build technology that can modernize banking infrastructure while addressing regulatory and cybersecurity challenges.

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If the decision by the New York appeals court is upheld, banks and other lenders could have trouble finding buyers for credit card and other consumer loans.

One of the biggest U.S. mortgage lenders is looking to disrupt the disruptors in the market for peer-to-peer loans.

The federal government's first broad inquiry into the fast-growing peer-to-peer loan industry raises several important questions, including whether banks will lobby for a clampdown on these lightly regulated competitors.

Citigroup Inc. is preparing to bundle more than $300 million of loans originated through Prosper Marketplace Inc. into securities as Wall Street helps fuel the online-lending industry, people familiar with the deal said.

Marlette Funding is set to announce Friday that it has raised $75 million from investors including a fund affiliated with the Invus Group, a private-equity firm, and Navient Corp. The money will mainly be used to keep a portion of the loans Marlette originates through its website, MyBestEgg.com.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and from our social media platforms.

Upstart, a marketplace lender founded by ex-Google employees, has more than doubled its funding after receiving an investment from a group led by activist hedge-fund investor Dan Loeb. The company plans to use the funds to improve its underwriting analytics.

The Treasury Department launched an inquiry into the marketplace lending industry on Thursday, seeking information on its business models, customers and whether such firms should be forced to keep some "skin in the game."

From Beijing to Paris to Dublin, peer-to-peer lending is blossoming. A quick look at the industry in various parts of the globe.

ZestFinance in Los Angeles has introduced a loan product for subprime borrowers whose credit scores nearly qualify as prime.

Pave, a marketplace lender, has partnered with Cross River Bank of Teaneck, N.J., to help it expand its online, short-term loan product nationwide.

RealtyMogul.com, a Los Angeles-based marketplace lending platform, announced a new $35 million round in venture capital funding Tuesday.

CommonBond Chief Executive David Klein discusses the company's strategy to cross-sell financial products to the firm's student loan borrowers, many of whom are young and affluent.

American Banker readers share their views on the most pressing banking topics of the week. Comments are excerpted from reader response sections of AmericanBanker.com articles and from our social media platforms.

A new crop of P-to-P loan platforms is focusing on commercial real estate loans that get ignored by banks.

Requiring brokers to come clean with customers about conflicts of interest sounds like an easy way to address biases. But disclosures are only effective if recipients understand how the conflict has influenced the advisor and have a way to correct that influence.

While some predict that fintech startups will soon overthrow banks, a boom in partnerships between the two industries is far more likely. Startups will benefit from access to new markets and infrastructure, while banks will stay on the cutting edge of innovation.

Moody's managing director Will Black questions whether marketplace lenders, which generally don’t retain credit risk, have enough incentive to maintain the quality of the loans they're facilitating. He also praises the P-to-P firms for publishing detailed loan-level data.