BLender’s hybrid model creates credit ratings based on financial, social, and demographic background to upend the banks’ foothold on peer-to-peer lending – and empower emerging markets

P2P lending platform, BLender, secured $5M in funding from Blumberg Capital, one of the leading American VC firms whose most notable influence is in the global FinTech market. The company currently operates within Israel, but with the funding, BLender plans expand into Western European and Latin American markets within the coming months. Blender CEO, Dr. Gal Aviv, told Geektime that targeted countries include Columbia, Brazil, Germany, and France, among others. He also indicated that some new features will be released, although he would not disclose any specifics.
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The Israeli FinTech startup BLender offers an alternative to the expensive credit provided by banks and credit card companies.

Israeli Investment House Psagot has announced an agreement to purchase 20% of multinational Peer to Peer (P2P) lending platform BLenders’ activity in Israel, pending regulatory approvals. No financial details from the deal have been revealed yet but it is known that Psagot will be adding its representative to the BLender Israel Board of Directors.
Psagot is the largest investment house in Israel and manages assets valued at $50 billion for a million individuals, corporations and institutions. It is owned by Apax Partners, a UK-based private equity and venture capital firm.
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Dr. Gal Aviv in an interview for i24 news

In an interview for i24 news, BLender CEO Dr. Gal Aviv explains how BLender is transforming Israel’s financial markets and making it possible to borrow money conveniently and at a worthwhile interest rate. Watch here.

BLender is named one of the most promising young FinTech companies in 2015 by KPMG – H2 Ventures. Just two Israeli companies made it onto the list.

The FinTech 100 list features the 50 leading established companies in the world and 50 of the most exciting emerging companies in the field (the rising stars). The list is the result of global research in the field and includes 40 firms from the Americas, 20 from Europe, Africa, and the Middle East, 18 from the U.K., and 22 from the Asia-Pacific region. The list includes just two Israeli companies: BLender (on the rising stars lists) and OurCrowd (on the 50 established leaders list). Complete list.

Dr. Gal Aviv in an Interview for Channel 20’s Economic Night

BLender CEO Dr. Gal Aviv is interviewed by Sharon Gal for Channel 20’s Economic Night on the global trend of social loans—which we pioneered in Israel!—and the venture’s first year. Watch here.

Bigger than the Industrial Revolution – Channel 10 covers the sharing economy

 In an interview for Channel 10 on the “sharing economy,” Dr. Gal Aviv, CEO of BLender, discusses the global trend of peer-to-peer lending, which we pioneered in Israel! Watch here.

Dr. Gal Aviv, CEO of Blender, named one of the 100 most influential people in our lives and the future of our children

The hottest word in the financial world these days is “FinTech”: that is, harnessing technological developments to provide financial services. The tremendous technological capabilities offered by the smartphone era, the complete access to information and services at any place and time, and the slowness of banks, has set the stage for organizations and individuals to come in and challenge the traditional banking systems.
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See the full list of the 100 most influential people.

BLender: Mixing up the money again

Efforts to create a social bank have failed due to the restrictions imposed by the government, so that’s where Israeli entrepreneurship comes in ● Meet the online financial platform that specializes in P2P loans. The result: higher interest rates for lenders and lower interest rates for borrowers. Read more.

The largest P2P marketplace on Earth – Lending Club – is currently worth $7 billion and has seen it loan volume grow 20 percent per month every quarter of 2015 so far. And while LendingClub is the biggest – it is finding itself in an increasingly crowded marketplace .

Analysts say that by the end of 2015, person-to-person lending will drive roughly $77 billion in loan volume — 15 times more than the $5 billion it drove in 2012, Bloomberg reports And while that growth rate is astonishing, P2P lending growth overall is a mere .08 percent drop in a $96 trillion total lending bucket worldwide

The rapid growth of the P2P lending world is of concern to some.
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Sensibly Connect the World’s Borrowers and Lenders

Powered by social data and $5 million in new funding, BLender is aiming to expand its lending platform to global borrowers and investors. Read more.