Lendable Plans as Much as $180 Million of Fresh Lending in 2021

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) — Lendable Ltd. is raising funds to enable fresh loans of $120 million and $180 million this year to customers in Africa, South East Asia and Latin America, according to co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Daniel Goldfarb.

The London-based lender, whose financiers include New York investment firm Waterfall Asset Management LLC, is seeking $15 million to $25 million in combined debt and equity and separately expects “a larger transaction for a fund” in the next 60 days, Goldfarb said in an emailed response to questions, without giving more details.

The new cash will enable it to complete transactions and expand into new markets. Lendable advances loans to fintechs working in consumer credit, micro-, small- and medium-sized company credit, asset finance, payments, remittances, and creators of digital marketplaces in nine markets including Kenya, South Africa and the Philippines.

The company has disbursed more than $125 million so far, $26 million of which was loaned out this year, after raising $143 million in lending capital, Goldfarb said.

“In the next few months, we will complete our first transaction in Senegal and potentially our first local-currency transaction in Nigeria,” Goldfarb said. The company sees “a ton of innovation” on the digitization of businesses and around asset finance in Egypt and South Africa, he said.

Source: Bloomberg Business News