Funding Circle Sees Promising Growth After Restructuring Efforts

Funding Circle, the London-listed small business lender, has buoyed investor confidence with its latest results, showcasing a notable turnaround in its financial performance. The company reported a 21 per cent increase in credit extended to customers during the first half of the year, totalling £1.1 billion. This surge in activity boosted its share price by 6.1 per cent, closing at 138p.

The lender revealed that term loan originations reached £736 million, compared to £692 million in the same period the previous year. Meanwhile, its cashback credit card operations and FlexiPay unit also recorded strong growth. This continued progress signals the success of the company’s restructuring strategy under Chief Executive Lisa Jacobs, who took charge in 2022.

Jacobs implemented significant organisational changes, including cutting around 120 jobs and selling off the company’s US division, with a focus on transforming Funding Circle from a loss-making business into a profitable operation. These efforts have begun to show tangible results, with the firm posting an £800,000 pre-tax profit for 2024, a stark improvement from a £9.9 million loss the year before. Excluding exceptional items, the pre-tax profit rose to £3.4 million.

Funding Circle’s initial public offering in 2018 valued the firm at £1.5 billion, making it a pioneer in retail peer-to-peer lending. However, regulatory changes and missed growth targets caused the company’s share price to fall after the IPO. The effects of the Covid-19 pandemic further impacted the peer-to-peer market, prompting the lender to pivot its focus towards institutional funding for small businesses.

Now valued at approximately £420 million, Funding Circle is targeting pre-tax profits of more than £30 million on revenues exceeding £200 million in 2025. The interim results indicate that the company is on track to meet these ambitious targets. Jacobs highlighted the revenue growth and improving profit margins in the streamlined business, stating that continued investments in new products are driving strong performance.

The lender’s recent performance and strategic direction have positioned it as a revitalised competitor in the small business lending market.