Funding Circle among firms attending landmark Treasury conference
Funding Circle is among fintech firms set to attend a landmark Treasury conference today (14 September).
The peer-to-peer lender will be among attendees at the Treasury Connect conference in London, which is bringing together chief executives of the UK’s largest technology firms and investors.
“The Treasury Connect conference highlights the chancellor’s ongoing commitment to the UK’s world-leading tech sector, and we applaud the way Treasury and the British Business Bank worked with fintechs and banks to support small businesses during the pandemic.” Samir Desai, chief executive of Funding Circle, said.
“We’re proud of the role our technology and distribution platform played in delivering this vital support, and look forward to continuing to work with the government to help small- and medium-sized enterprises access growth finance.”
It comes as British Business Bank data revealed more than 150 firms have converted government-backed future fund finance into equity stakes.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said he was delighted to bring some of the biggest tech firms and investors together to celebrate UK technology and expertise at Treasury Connect.
“These firms have huge economic potential and will play a critical role in our future prosperity – all while creating high-skilled jobs and boosting the economy as part of our plan for jobs,” he said.
“The future fund was set up to ensure that investment keeps flowing to our most innovative businesses, and it’s fantastic that taxpayers now have equity in these top-performing start-ups.
“Investing in these companies has the potential to accelerate innovations that will transform UK industry, develop new medicines and strengthen our position as a science superpower.”
More than 1,190 companies were approved for convertible loans worth £1.14bn under the future fund, which was launched in May 2020 as part of the government’s measures to support businesses during the pandemic.
P2P lenders including CapitalRise, Crowd2Fund, Assetz Capital, JustUs, FutureBricks, Propio and Invest and Fund have raised at least £4.3m, according to Peer2Peer Finance News research.