Sending Request.
Please wait...
Sign in.
Unlike most consulting businesses in the leisure and hospitality sector, RAM Management Services provide full management teams and staff, as well as advice.
RAM Climate Limited are seeking to borrow £125k from rebuildingsociety’s lender base to stay ahead of the game by investing in technology, additional marketing resources, and a new sales team to aid profitable growth. They decided to borrow from the crowd because they admired the lending market, says director Ravi Keshri:
“We have come to the P2P market because of the transparent nature of the model. It’s great that lenders and borrowers have the opportunity to communicate with each other. We would rather the majority of the interest go to lenders who are investing their hard-earned money, rather than to fund the elaborate infrastructure of banks that caused the 2008 financial collapse.“
Over 80% of RAM’s revenue comes from stable, long-term contracts – and the business is profitable, with no other borrowings. Independent credit reference agency Credit Safe have assigned the company a grade A credit rating.
Keshri says the numbers add up to make the loan very affordable. “Our business model has been tested and proven, our turnover has grown from around £500k three years ago to closer to £2.5m in the current year. Our net profits in 2015 are nearly five times the loan repayments which would be due on the £125k loan.”
The loan is supported by a second charge that will be registered against the director’s investment property, with an estimated value of £355k and estimated equity of £121k. There are 5 days left on the loan auction, so if you want to read RAM’s marketplace listing, it’s a good time to do so.
“Bill Nye tops Spock’s record as most funded Kickstarter documentary,” Indiewire.
The team making a behind-the-scenes documentary about beloved TV and real-life scientist Bill Nye closed their Kickstarter campaign with more than $800,000 in pledges from more than 16,000 backers. The film is now the most backed Kickstarter for a documentary in the platform’s history, and producers are hoping to submit the “full access, exclusive film” to festivals in 2017.
“Crowdfunding sites aim to make the law accessible to all,” Financial Times.
Using crowdfunding to fund legal cases is a fairly new phenomenon in the industry, but companies — like CrowdJustice in the UK and Invest4Justice in the U.S. — are breaking ground. At CrowdJustice, founder Julia Salasky and her team seek public interest cases and invites the public to fund related legal fees.
“Donors can be people who take human rights seriously, but they could also be those who worry that something which is happening to someone else could also happen to them,” she says.
“WIRED’s 100 Hottest European Startups 2015: London,” Wired
Wired has announced its 100 hottest startups, and several London-based firms made the list, including peer-to-peer market Funding Circle.
“What will a rate rise mean for P2P lending?” Lending Works
Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has stated that 0.5 percent borrowing costs will soon be a thing of the past. This will have a few impacts, such as better returns on savings. But, there is a chance that the change could make P2P less attractive to some borrowers, skewing the market too much in favor of lenders.
“Ignore the snobs: Why crowdfunding is bringing diversity back to business,” City A.M.
“The evidence suggests that crowd investors are as aware as anyone that there’s a high chance they will lose money. However, they also know that, as a part of a broader portfolio (the investors in E-Car have made an average of 12 crowd investments), equity investments can make sense. If anything, allowing people to make small investments in companies, from as little as £10, should improve financial literacy and encourage people from all backgrounds to engage with business, increasing scrutiny and, hopefully, outcomes.”
Part of what draws many borrowers to crowdfunding is a sense of control over the outcome of their loan. Did you know that borrower behaviour can have a serious impact on a loan’s interest rate?
A few simple behaviors can make all the difference in your loan’s competitiveness — and more competition means a better rate when your application completes. Here are a few ways you, the borrower, can incfluence your rate.
(more…)
Our weekly round-up of peer-to-peer and crowdfunding news.
Peer-to-peer lenders get ahead of regulation with voluntary code, Yahoo Finance
U.S. peer-to-peer lenders have released a list of six best practice guidelines that lenders can use to protect borrowers. The announcement comes on the heels of news that the U.S. Treasury Depart is gathering more information about peer-to-peer lending. The “Small Business Borrowers’ Bill of Rights” calls for more transparency, responsible underwriting and non-discriminatory access to credit, among other safeguards.
“China seeks to tame online financial risks,” Financial Times
China’s move toward regulation of online lending both legitimizes a growing industry and indicates the government’s support of traditional banks.
“Regulation will standardise operations and expose the industry to sunlight. Practices that were seen as existing in a grey area will be forbidden,” says Xu Hongwei, chief executive of Online Lending House, a website that tracks the P2P industry. “But regulation will also increase operating costs, causing some of the lower ranking and weaker players who can’t make the cut to go bankrupt. And it will raise barriers to entry. Average people won’t be able to get in any more.”
“The Wired 100,” Wired
Wired is releasing its annual list of 100 most influential people in tech-related fields, and this year UK-based P2P service Funding Circle Team made the list at number 92. Wired notes, “Funding Circle now has access to over 38,000 investors, who lent £100m to small businesses in Q1 2015 alone. The company hopes to hit $1bn in loans this year.”
“Brazil’s BankFacil Secures $3M, Launches Low-Rate Consumer Loans,” Wall Street Journal
BankFacil has raised venture capital so it can make consumer loans easier and cheaper. The three-year-old online lending startup mostly competes with banks, as alternative finance is a nascent industry in Brazil. Founder and CEO Sergio Furio hopes to secure a large enough volume of loans to be able to offer markedly better interest rates than other lenders, including banks.
The UK is generating 72 percent more P2P lending capital per capita than the U.S., according to new research from Business Insider. Several factors, including a friendly regulatory environment, very high rate of online access and early adoption contribute to this. Business Insider subscribers can read the full report.
Astra Recruitment Solutions Co-Director Donna Barnes describes her business as a “bespoke personal recruitment solution.” Consultants provide customised service for each client and job candidate to ensure every recruit is just what their company needs, and vice versa.
In the booming recruitment industry, Astra has grown rapidly and needs more staff to keep up with demand. So today, they’re recruiting investors. Astra has applied for a £25,000 rebuildingsociety.com loan to be able to hire three additional consultants to enable growth across divisions. Our investment community has already reacted positively to this exciting opportunity, and the application has reached its funding target. However, Astra continues to welcome lenders to compete and improve the loan’s interest rate.
“Our consultants are specialists within their markets and so are able to advise and guide how the market is and guide on what is needed to recruit and retain the best talent,” Barnes explains. “We work hard at understanding the culture fit of clients, and in the current passive candidates-driven market, we know where to find that talent.”
The loan will help Astra hire three additional consultants and train them in specialised areas to further strengthen Astra’s offerings to clients, because at the moment Astra has more work than its consultants can effectively handle.
“We want the business to have a nurturing culture to develop our own talent by investing in training and coaching alongside realistic targets. Our aim is to deliver win-win-win recruitment solutions where all parties benefit and build long term, trusted strategic partnerships.”
Barnes has 15 years of experience in recruitment, and co-director Carol McGeary has more than 20 years in the industry. Together, they created a business that has seen rapid and sustained growth in its first few years of operations. The loan is guaranteed both personally and with a second charge on a property.
Astra has a sister recruitment company, Mitrem Recruitment Solutions, which together form the Talem Recruitment Group. The group was formed to allow for future expansion and acquisition.
“We are excited and appreciative, because this injection will enable us to realise and secure our long term goals for Astra,” Barnes says.
Our weekly roundup of peer-to-peer news.
“Women’s Comics Are Surfing The Crowd,” NPR
Numerous female comic artists have turned to the crowd instead of major publishers to produce their creative visions. As DC, Marvel and others launch and re-launch powerful women characters, the market is ripe for women to seek support for their work. For many successful projects, crowdfunding has been the answer.
“There’s no better way to get the word out [about a project] and no better way to reach women,” says artist Amy Reeder.
“Crowdfunding the future: New regulation”s could dramatically change entrepreneurship in America,” World
The slow rollout of regulations related to crowdfunding in the United States may finally be speeding up, creating more room for companies and new ventures to use crowdfunding to launch businesses.
The “general solicitation” regulations, released last year, are already making a difference inside the venture capital industry, according to Bill Clark, the founder and president of Austin-based MicroVentures, one of the first crowdfunding sites. He called the new rules “very good for startups. They have allowed companies with customers and fan bases to communicate directly with them.”
“Amazon Rolls Out the Red Carpet for Startups with Amazon Launchpad,” Business Wire
Online commercial giant Amazon has begun a new program to help startups launch, market and distribute their products on the website.
“As the pace of innovation continues to increase within the startup community, we want to help customers discover these unique products and learn the inspiration behind them. We also know from talking to startups that bringing a new product to market successfully can be just as challenging as building it,” said Jim Adkins, Vice President, Amazon. “Amazon Launchpad gives customers access to a dedicated storefront featuring a variety of innovative new products from emerging brands. For startups, we handle inventory management, order fulfillment, customer service, and more, allowing them to focus their efforts on the innovation that results in more cool products.”
“Small Business Borrowing: Does Reputation Really Matter?,” Forbes
No matter where a small business owner lives, their reputation in the community can be a key factor to receiving financial support to create and expand their businesses. Leaders at Kiva Zip, a micro-finance organization that provides small business loans in the U.S., has found community trust to be a key indicator of a loan’s potential success. They apply the same frameworks to U.S. loans as Kiva has used in its global market for a decade.
“Orchard Provides Feedback on Recent US Treasury Interest in Marketplace Lending,” Crowdfund Insider
Crowdfund Insider interviewed Orchard CEO Matt Burton, who will be attending a panel hosted by the U.S. Treasury Department on August 5th as part of the department’s efforts to gather more information about microfinance, crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending. He says:
“I think this is a great opportunity to show the Treasury how our industry operates within the existing regulatory framework, and educate them on the core principles of marketplace lending — the three T’s: technology, transparency, and trust. Regulatory agencies in other countries, such as the U.K., have actively embraced marketplace lending and created frameworks to facilitate its growth and adoption. More regulations could certainly hurt consumers if it limits their access to credit, but I think we’ll find a way to work together with increased transparency for all parties.”