Zopa secured £15 million or $25 million from Arrowgrass Capital Partners. Zopa is the biggest peer-to-peer lending firm in Europe. The London-based firm provides low-cost loans to customers, allowing them to save. Since the service was rolled out in 2005, Zopa was already able to loans worth over £455 million.
In a statement about the funding, Zopa said proceeds of the investment round will be used to help further the company's growth. It will also use the proceeds to disseminate information regarding the better rates and service it offers to more consumers in the UK.
Zopa is backed by Benchmark, Bessemer Venture Partners, Augmentum Capital and Wellington Partners, PE HUB reported. The financing marks another investment for Zopa from institutional investors. In December 2012, Zopa secured funding in a round led by Augmentum Capital.
As part of the deal, Arrowgrass Chief Executive Officer Henry Kenner will be joining the board of Zopa as a non-executive director. Arrowgrass Capital Partners is a London-based alternative asset manager that has assets under management of about $4.6 billion.
Zopa said it was able to lend £180 million last year. It is projected to grow this amount to £500 million before April this year. The peer-to-peer lending industry in the UK is growing at a rapid pace with the lending amount projected to reach £1 billion per year by next year, the statement said.
Zopa Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder Giles Andrews said in the statement, "As Zopa enables borrowers to dramatically cut their borrowing rates, and savers to see their money grow at market-leading rates and with the security they deserve, it's win-win. This investment offers the opportunity to spread the benefits of Zopa further and faster."
For the past four years, Zopa has been voted as the "Most Trusted Personal Loan Provider" in the Moneywise Customer Awards, the statement said.
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