Lending Works acquired by Intriva Capital

Lending Works, a UK peer-to-peer lending platform, has been acquired by private asset manager, Intriva Capital, for an undisclosed amount.

The deal, still subject to regulatory approval, sees Intriva buy 100% of Lending Work’s equity.

Upon completion, the deal will also see Intriva provide “additional funding and capital” to grow the firm.

Lending Works says such investments will see its team and business expand.

Lending Works

The alternative lender launched in 2014, and to date has lent out almost £250 million to consumers.

Following its acquisition, Lending Works wants to grow its lending balance sheet three-fold to £1 billion each year by 2025.

The fintech’s founder and CEO, Nicholas Harding, will continue to lead the business alongside its existing management team.

“We set up the business six years ago in very different economic times, but demand for our proposition in the future will be stronger than ever,” says Harding in a statement.

“This [acquisition] will ultimately help us to realise our ambition of becoming the market leader,” he adds.

Intriva’s managing partner Simon Finn called Lending Works “one of the UK’s most successful challenger consumer credit businesses operating” today.

“With a diversified funding base, the company is now in a position to realise the historical investment in the platform,” says Finn.

But during the current crisis, Lending Work’s revenues have suffered. Earlier this month, the peer-to-peer (P2P) lender extended its ‘normalisation period’ for another 90 days.

Introduced in April, the period has helped borrowers access payment holidays and deferrals during the crisis.

Intriva

Intriva is a situations-focused private equity firm co-founded by executives from Apollo Global Management – a firm currently managing roughly $312 billion in assets.

Founded in 2016, the London-headquartered firm invests in special situations which arise across Western Europe from unsustainable capital structures, dislocated markets, and structural change.

With offices in London and Frankfurt, Intriva manages around €500 million in assets. The firm launched its second fund this year, with a €300 million target.

As part of the deal to acquire Lending Works, Intriva’s Simon Finn, Dean Walsh and Tom Saunders will join the fintech’s board as non-executive directors