Zencap was a German company, operating a peer-to-peer lending platform, which allowed private savers to lend money directly to small and medium-sized businesses in Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands.[1] Using the crowdfunding model, the company based in Berlin, Germany[2] aimed to create a direct link between private lenders and small businesses seeking loans.[1][3][4][5] As of December 2014, Zencap had facilitated 5 million Euro in loans to small and medium-sized firms.[6]
 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services Software |
| Founder | Dr. Christian Grobe, Dr. Matthias Knecht |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Germany, Spain, The Netherlands |
| Products | Peer-to-peer lending |
Number of employees | 65 |
| Parent | Rocket Internet |
| Website | Official website  |
In October 2015, the company was merged with Funding Circle, being active on UK and US.[7][8]
Origin
editThe company, based in Berlin, was founded in March 2014[9][10] by Christian Grobe and Matthias Knecht, with support from Rocket Internet.[1][9][11]
Lending
editThe business model resembled the US peer-to-peer lending platform Lending Club and UK-based company Funding Circle.[12][failed verification] Zencap facilitated small business loans from 10,000 to 250,000 euros.[1] Zencap determined whether the borrower was creditworthy and assigned a credit grade that determined the payable interest rate and the fees. Zencap itself charged borrowers a 1% to 4.5% origination fee. The loan period ranged between 6 and 60 months while the loan could be repaid without an early repayment fee at any time.[13] Conditions varied between countries.
Der Tagesspiegel quoted founder Christian Grobe, "We are very strict with the risk assessment."[1] Once approved, businesses posted their loan request on the Zencap marketplace, where private lenders were able to choose which businesses they wanted to lend money to.[14]
Funding Circle acquisition of Zencap
editIn October 2015, Zencap was acquired by UK based Funding Circle, another lending platform in Europe.[15] Zencap was active in Germany, Spain and the Netherlands.[15] The merge made Funding Circle one of the main peer to business lending leaders in Europe.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e Neuhaus, Carla (15 June 2014). "Woran Berliner Start-ups arbeiten". Tagesspiegel. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
- ^ Neuhaus, Carla (15 June 2014). "Woran Berliner Start-ups arbeiten". Tagesspiegel. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
- ^ Hackmann, Felicitas (7 February 2014). "Zencap is the latest investor-investment matching platform — now with credit, not equity". Human Ipo. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
- ^ "Rocket Internet's Credit Marketplace Zencap Will Help SMEs Ditch Bank Loans". Human Ipo. 31 March 2014. Retrieved 12 December 2014.
- ^ "Zencap crea una "nueva alternativa" de financiación para las pymes andaluzas". Retrieved 2015-01-12.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ "Geld leihen von Privatpersonen: 5 Millionen Euro erfolgreich finanziert". Zencap. Retrieved 13 February 2015.
- ^ "Funding Circle is entering Europe". Business Insider UK. 20 October 2015.
- ^ "Funding Circle übernimmt Zencap: Fintechs als Konkurrenz für Banken" (in German). Spiegel. 20 October 2015.
- ^ a b Drost, Frank Matthias (22 May 2014). "Jungunternehmer finanzieren den Mittelstand". Welt. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
- ^ "Zencap Deutschland GMBH – Informationen, Zahlen, Fakten und Nachrichten".
- ^ Räth, Georg (31 March 2014). "Das neue Rocket-Startup – Lendico für den Mittelstand". Gruenderszene. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
- ^ Hesse, Martin (31 March 2014). "David gegen Goliath". Der Spiegel. Retrieved 12 January 2015.
- ^ Jarotschkin, Viktor (5 September 2014). "Innovative Mittelstandsfinanzierung mit Zencap". Fuer-gruender.de. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "Start-Up-Schmiede will den Mittelstand finanzieren". Handelsblatt. 30 March 2014. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
- ^ a b Scuffham, Matt; Potter, Mark (20 October 2015). "Funding Circle expands into Europe through purchase of Zencap". Reuters. No. Financials. London. Thomson Reuters. Retrieved 24 December 2019.