Marketplace lending of small- and medium-sized enterprises

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Douglas Cumming - , Florida Atlantic University, University of Birmingham (Author)
  • Lars Hornuf - , University of Bremen, Munich Society for the Promotion of Economic Research - CESifo GmbH (Author)

Abstract

Research Summary: When evaluating Internet-based loan project of small and medium size enterprises (SME), lenders can rely on easy-to-understand risk ratings or more sophisticated financial information. We investigate lenders decisions and its effect on loan funding success on the marketplace-lending platform Zencap. The data set has been provided by the platform Zencap and includes 414 SME marketplace loans and 2,196 lenders. The data examined provide strong support for the importance of simple platform ratings in influencing investor behavior, while the effect of more detailed financial information is less pronounced, controlling for relevant variables. Higher interest rates appear more profitable to investors without any serious concern about non-repayment. Managerial Summary: Platform managers and potential borrowers are interested in how to encourage lenders to pledge their money on marketplace-lending platforms. We investigate the influence of easy-to-understand risk ratings and more sophisticated financial information on investment decisions and their effect on loan funding success on the marketplace-lending platform Zencap. We investigate 414 SME marketplace loans and 2,196 lenders. We find that for marketplace lending on Zencap the effect of more detailed financial information is less pronounced than easy-to-understand risk ratings. Platforms base risk ratings on information other than the entrepreneurs' financial information.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)32-66
Number of pages35
JournalStrategic Entrepreneurship Journal
Volume16
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2022
Peer-reviewedYes
Externally publishedYes

External IDs

WOS 000706772100001
Scopus 85116908037
ORCID /0000-0002-0576-7759/work/142239298

Keywords

Keywords

  • Crowdfunding, Crowdlending, Debt, Entrepreneurial finance, Internet, Loans

Library keywords