Fintern announces £32m fundraising

Ellie Duncan
15 Apr 2021

London-based start-up Fintern, which aims to increase access to affordable loans in the UK, has raised £32 million in equity and debt funding.

The equity funding has come from several angel investors, including fintech founders and business leaders, while Hamburg-based fintech Varengold Bank has provided the debt financing.

Fintern specialises in the provision of affordable personal credit to those who might otherwise turn to payday or high-cost lenders, by using Open Banking and AI to analyse customers’ transaction data, including incomings, outgoings, current repayments and repayment history, rather than relying on a credit score.

It currently offers loans of between £500 and £5,000 for durations of up to three years with a variable APR of 18.8% and is targeting £1 billion of consumer loans by 2025.

Gerald Chappell, Fintern CEO and co-founder, said: “This fundraising puts Fintern in a strong position to deliver on our mission to increase access to affordable personal credit.

“Our distinctive data-driven approach to lending allows us to bypass credit scores, increase approval rates and lower APRs. We’re delighted to be partnering with Varengold Bank on the funding of our loan book, benefiting from their deep experience and commitment to fintech lending innovation.”

Fintern was founded in 2020 with a team from McKinsey, EY, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, HSBC and XiaoMi.

Written by Ellie Duncan, head of content at Open Banking Expo