Marketplace lending

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is taking aim at marketplace lenders, announcing Monday that it is accepting complaints about the developing industry and releasing a bulletin to inform the public about such firms.

Cordia Bancorp recently sold its student lending platform due to concerns about loan concentrations. In doing so, the Virginia company provided another example of why it is difficult for smaller institutions to gain traction in marketplace lending.

A new survey from seven regional Federal Reserve banks found that many small businesses are going online to access credit. But even when they are approved, applicants often end up dissatisfied because the loans carry high interest rates or have unfavorable repayment terms.

Complying with legal and credit bureau criteria for data furnishers is just one of the compelling reasons why a marketplace lender may take a pass on reporting credit data.

Prosper Marketplace has tapped USAA executive David Kimball to be its next chief financial officer.

Cordia said in a press release Tuesday that it sold its CordiaGrad platform to its Jack Zoeller, the $348 million-asset company's chief executive.

More than 200 small banks across the country will be able to offer online loans to their small-business customers as part of a new partnership announced Tuesday.

The nation's largest marketplace lender announced changes Friday to its partnership with Utah-based WebBank. The revisions are designed to preserve Lending Club's ability to ignore state interest rate caps.

Regulators’ focus on having banks and credit unions offer payday loan alternatives to underserved consumers overlooks the success of Web-based companies in filling credit gaps.

Delinquencies are rising among the sector's less creditworthy borrowers, which is contributing to smaller returns for investors. This sets up the first major test for an industry that blossomed during a period of unusually low defaults.

Shares in the online small-business lender plunged Tuesday after the firm's 2016 revenue guidance fell short of expectations. New details about the firm's plans to provide its technology to big banks did nothing to stanch the bleeding.

Cornerstone Community Credit Union in Des Moines, Iowa, has partnered with the online marketplace lender LendingPoint to provide loan products for its members that struggle to qualify for traditional financing.

It is time for institutions to act independently of the Federal Reserve and raise their loan interest rates to improve returns.

OnDeck Capital in New York reported a $5.1 million loss in the fourth quarter as revenue failed to keep pace with rising expenses.

The terms "peer-to-peer" and "marketplace" lending are often used interchangeably to define all manner of loans made through the Internet. The reality, though, is that aside from lacking storefronts, the many firms now operating in this arena have little in common with one another. Here's a guide to help tell them apart.

About 10% of midsize businesses say they want to develop a relationship with nonbank providers, such as marketplace lenders or business development companies, and even more are said to be considering switching banks.

The burgeoning industry has been hoping the Supreme Court would overturn a problematic lower-court ruling, but the unexpected passing of a conservative stalwart makes that outcome less likely.

Inspired by marketplace lenders, Live Oak Bancshares created a largely digital product that can make a credit decision on a small-business loan within 48 hours. The product, which combines human decision-making and automated credit scoring, could go national as early as next year.

Disruption in credit scoring is healthy, but the new models touted by marketplace and other alternative lenders are still untested, especially about how loans will perform in a downturn.

Lending Club reported record earnings in the fourth quarter thanks to soaring loan demand.