The Estonian peer-to-peer lending platform iuvo reached a significant milestone – over 10M EUR invested by investors from more than 80 countries from around the world. For the last year and a half, the platform is growing steadily with an average monthly growth rate of 34% of the invested funds. The statistics show that the interest in the peer-to-peer lending industry is growing at a rapid pace across Europe. The most interest iuvo indicates from countries such as Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, and Austria, which means that the industry is getting more and more pan-European and we hope to see…

The startup world is being rapidly transformed by Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs). Instead of giving up shares, many startups are now raising finance by issuing their own blockchain-based crypto coins to investors around the world. The US, Singapore, and Switzerland are currently the leading jurisdictions for entrepreneurs considering where to launch their ICOs, although all governments are still figuring out how to regulate ICOs. Unfortunately for both entrepreneurs and investors, that means ICOs continue to operate in what could be described as legal grey areas at best, while the lack of clarity and trust is holding back the benefits of…

According to the study of the growing market of the alternative finance, conducted by the European P2P platform Robo.cash, Switzerland, Latvia, Russia and Argentina are expected to join the global alternative lending market in the coming 2-3 years. According to the results of the Swiss market of the alternative finance, Switzerland is among those countries which are expected to show remarkable growth. In 2014 the University of Cambridge estimated its volume of transactions to ca. €12 million per year and put Switzerland after Sweden, the Netherlands, Estonia, Finland, etc. In 2015 the volume of the local P2P market grew to…

Merely seven months after the launch, peer-to-peer lending platform VIAINVEST has reached a milestone of 10 million EUR loans funded through its platform. Listed consumer loans issued by the alternative financial services provider VIA SMS Group in Czech Republic, Poland, Latvia and Spain were funded by investors from more than 30 countries. Peer-to-peer lending platform VIAINVEST was launched in December 2016 and has grown significantly since then. “We are excited to be a part of a continuously growing peer-to-peer and fintech community,” says Eduards Lapkovskis, CEO of VIAINVEST. “Success of VIAINVEST shows that we have set the right goal –…

The Baltic region, which consists of the three countries in northern Europe on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, namely Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, has seen its fintech scene grow significantly in the past few years. One segment in particular is peer-to-peer lending and crowdfunding. Today, these countries host numerous platforms focusing on consumer lending, business loans and invoice factoring, among many other areas. Here is our pick of the top eight most promising peer-to-peer lending and crowdfunding platforms in the Baltic states. Viainvest VIAINVEST is a new peer-to-peer lending marketplace provided by Latvia-based VIA SMS Group. The platform…

Launched in late-2016, VIAINVEST is a new peer-to-peer lending marketplace provided by Latvia-based VIA SMS Group. The platform allows both individuals and companies to invest into loans originated by non-banking lenders. Commenting on the launch, Eduards Lapkovskis, Member of the Board at VIA SMS Group, stated:     “By launching VIAINVEST we aim to ensure an easy-to-use P2P lending marketplace that offers secure and transparent investment opportunities. Our priority is to focus on the needs of each investor despite their level of experience.” Loans available for investment on VIAINVEST are originated by the VIA SMS Group and its associated companies operating…

The Baltic states, namely Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, are becoming active in the fintech sector, thanks to a number of startups are putting the region on the map. TransferWise, which was started by Estonians Kristo Käärmann and Taavet Hinrikus in 2011, is a peer-to-peer money transfer platform and one of Europe’s few truly global tech success stories. Since launch, TransferWise has attracted investment from some of the hottest names in tech, including Richard Branson, Peter Thiel and Andreessen Horowitz, and is worth over a billion dollars. Latvian native fintech firm Creamfinance has been named one of the fastest growing fintech…