Online lending platform Funding Circle announced on Tuesday it has expanded its strategic partnership with U.S. regional bank INTRUST Bank to support the growth of small businesses in the U.S. The lender reported that following the successful launch of the partnership earlier this year, the expansion of the collaboration will increase INSTRUST’s funding commitment and kicks off a targeted, co-branded marketing campaign, which will give business owners across Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Arkansas more access to fast and flexible financing.
According to Funding Circle, more than 150 American small businesses have received loans backed by INTRUST through the Funding Circle platform since the partnership launch. Funding Circle also revealed that the upsized commitment is anticipated to increase this number above 500 and the new marketing campaign will open new financing opportunities for growing businesses within the bank’s geographic footprint. Brian Heinrichs, Chief Financial Officer of INTRUST Bank, stated:
“For more than 140 years, INTRUST has continuously sought ways to give our customers greater opportunities to succeed, and our growing partnership with Funding Circle is the latest step in that commitment. This collaboration is a good example of the ways traditional and innovative financial service providers can work together to help small businesses prosper.”
Bernardo Martinez, US Managing Director of Funding Circle, then added:
“We are thrilled that INTRUST Bank has chosen to implement the next phase of our partnership. Not only has INTRUST recognized the investment opportunity available through the Funding Circle platform, but this expansion underscores that Funding Circle’s loans are often the best option on the market for American business owners seeking growth capital. We view our partnership with INTRUST as a blueprint for the remaining geographies within the US.”
Funding Circle is contributing to the growth of the small business lending market and expanding access to financing at competitive and transparent pricing. A recent analysis by Oxford Economics found that lending through Funding Circle’s platform enabled 75,000 jobs in the US and Europe in 2017
