First Irish consumer P2P platform to launch next year

IRELAND’S first purely consumer peer-to-peer finance platform will launch in 2017, following a €2m (£1.8m) investment from the country’s government.

Initiative Ireland has announced the multi-million-euro issuance under Ireland’s Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme (EIIS), a tax-relief incentive scheme on certain investments.

The new platform will connect individuals looking to borrow and lend money. As with most P2P lenders, Initiative Ireland will tier loans and borrowers in terms of risk, offering the best risks to those applicants who secure the best credit scores.

The company is working to secure regulatory approval and expects to launch in May of next year. It expects to hire 25 more staff over the next three years.

“At Initiative Ireland, we‘re excited about creating a consumer finance industry that is honest, fair and inclusive,” said Padraig W Rushe, chief executive and co-founder of Initiative Ireland.

“That’s why we’re combining business and technology innovations which have worked well in other markets, to create something sustainable and tailored to the Irish market. We believe we can make a positive difference to people’s lives, by giving them better options when it comes to borrowing money or putting their own money to work.”

Ireland’s Minister of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Mary Mitchell O’Connor welcomed the firm’s plans to create both specialist and graduate jobs at the new platform.

“Supporting innovative high potential startups is a key part of the government action plan for jobs,” she said. “Initiative Ireland are working to bring impactful innovations to the market at home and abroad. I welcome Initiative Ireland’s P2P lending platform which will create 25 jobs and I wish the team the very best for a successful future.”