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This entry was posted on 4/7/2008 5:21 PM and is filed under Management,Lending.
SAN FRANCISCO, April 3, 2008 /PRNewswire/ — Social lending pioneer Zopa (http://www.zopa.com/)
has won a major international award from Retail Banker International, a
global trade publication that tracks and analyzes all the issues facing
the global retail financial services industry. The publication
recognized Zopa as the "Most Threatening Non-bank Competitor" in an
awards gala at the 26th Retail Banker International Forum on April 2.
Zopa is a leading proponent of "social lending"—linking consumers willing to lend money to others, with borrowers. Peer-to-peer
lenders market themselves to borrowers as cheaper, easier alternatives to bank
loans and credit cards. About $100
million of these peer-to-peer loans will be issued this year, with new ones
expected to jump to $1 billion in 2010 and $9 billion by 2017, according to Online Banking Report.
A U.S. company, Zopa is based in San Francisco and London, with
operations in the United States, Italy, the United Kingdom and soon
Japan. More than 200,000 customers have joined Zopa since the company's
launch in 2005. The awards are designed "to recognize excellence and achievement in
retail banking globally." In winning the award, Zopa edged out an
impressive list of runners-up including PayPal, Wal-Mart, Vodafone and
Prosper.
Douglas Dolton, CEO of Zopa said, "This is a very gratifying award
to win, especially since we came out ahead of such large, respected
brands. While Zopa continues to win a number of major awards, it's
especially exciting to be recognized for the value we provide to our
members and our commitment to customer satisfaction."
