Funding Circle, which claims to be the United Kingdom’s largest small business loan platform, recently announced the appointment of Bruno Tavares as VP of Engineering.
Bruno has “a strong background in technology, built on more than twenty years of industry experience.”
He has “a clear track record of growing engineering teams and scaling products across a diverse range of sectors, including digital healthcare (Elephant Healthcare) and sports streaming services (DAZN).”
Bruno joins Funding Circle as the platform “continues developing its multi-product, multi-channel offering; rolling out revolutionary new products and capabilities so that SMEs can borrow, pay, spend—anytime, anywhere.”
This reportedly “includes FlexiPay — Funding Circle’s short-term finance product that enables businesses to spread any UK invoice over three months — and an embedded finance solution that allows partners to natively embed Funding Circle into their own website.”
Swati Lay, Chief Technology Officer, Funding Circle, said:
“I’m really excited to be welcoming Bruno to the team. As we expand the set of products that we offer to small businesses, Bruno’s experience of scaling and nurturing great engineering teams will play an invaluable part in delivering on Funding Circle’s 2024 plan.”
Bruno Tavares, VP Engineering, Funding Circle, said:
“I’m delighted to be joining Funding Circle. I’ve been impressed with what the team has built: a technology platform that has allowed more than 120,000 SMEs access fast, simple finance. The future is even more exciting; these new products and tech capabilities will make a huge difference in the lives of small business owners, and I can’t wait to get involved.”
As covered, Funding Circle claims it is “the UK’s largest loan platform for SMEs.”
Founded in 2010, its instant decision lending technology “enables small businesses to apply for finance in an average of six minutes, with lending decisions in as little as nine seconds.”
A wide range of investors are utilizing this technology and distribution platform “to lend c. £14 billion to approximately 120,000 businesses globally.”
This is “providing small businesses with the fast and simple access finance they need to grow and power the economy.” In 2021, lending through Funding Circle’s UK platform “is estimated to have contributed £7.2bn to GDP and supported 100,000 jobs.”