Owners of P2P lender ShareCredit acquire sister platform
ZION Capital, the owner of peer-to-peer lender ShareCredit, has acquired a sister platform called Volpit.
ShareCredit launched in 2016 and specialises in buy-to-let mortgages, business and consumer lending.
According to Patrick O’Flaherty, adviser to Zion Capital and co-founder of Volpit, Zion wanted to extend its reach into the UK’s residential and commercial property market despite the uncertainty caused by Brexit.
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Volpit, an equity crowdfunding platform, was launched in 2014 but struggled to compete with larger crowdfunding platforms like Seedrs and Crowdcube.
Zion intends to reposition Volpit as a property-focused equity crowdfunding platform called ShareCredit Property, which aims to compete with the likes of Property Partner and Property Moose.
Although ShareCredit and ShareCredit Property share the same brand name, they will be run by Zion as distinct companies with separate websites, O’Flaherty said.
“I’m happy Volpit is still going and has been given a second shot,” he added. “Zion can put a lot of investment into Volpit’s products, technology and business development. Zion’s network of high-net-worth individuals and their connections with institutional investors in China and Europe will help drive a lot of investors to the platform.”
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Julia Wang, chief executive of Zion Capital, claimed the acquisition will make it much easier for investors in the UK and overseas “to access the attractive returns on offer in UK residential and commercial property.”
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