NEW YORK, January 12, 2022 / PRNewswire / – Enigma, a data science company that provides extensive information on the financial health and identity of more than 30 million US companies, announces the spin-off of Prime, a lending platform that will make it easier for financial institutions to extend loans to small and medium-sized enterprises Enterprises (SMEs).
According to a recent Federal Reserve survey, more than 50% of small businesses lack adequate access to finance, and the pandemic has created even more challenges for small business owners. Often, small business lending is constrained by the inability of financial institutions to assess the risk of lending to a particular company.
Community and regional banks have faced particular challenges in providing finance to small businesses in their communities due to limited resources and a lack of reliable data on corporate health. Although these banks have close relationships with their local economies, the high cost of obtaining and servicing small business loans makes them difficult to compete with large financial institutions.
Prime will provide smaller financial institutions such as community banks as well as more established lenders with access to advanced data analysis, risk modeling and capital markets. This will ultimately lower the cost of capital for small businesses as more banks will be able to efficiently issue, monitor, and securitize small business loans.
Prime’s dashboard will allow banks to upload loan books and view advanced indicators like Enigma’s business revenue and growth data to make risk and credit decisions more efficient and secure. With Prime, small banks get better insights into their SME loan portfolios and can finally syndicate, swap and securitize commitments.
Enigma is partnering with leading small business finance companies including Capital One, Third Point Ventures, Customers Bank and NEA to launch Prime with a funding commitment from $ 49 million. Prime, which will commence serving the market in the second half of 2022, will offer lenders new credit options while also opening up a new funding channel for small businesses.
Prime’s lending solutions will be based on Enigma’s proprietary SMB identity and financial data covering more than 30 million US companies. Enigma’s data provides unique insight into the monthly earnings, growth and detailed company data of a small business.
Prime’s launch partners have extensive experience with SME lending.
Capital One, a current Enigma client and investor through Capital One Ventures, has seen firsthand how better small business data drives growth. Capital One brings unparalleled expertise to the small business ecosystem, acquired through listening and learning from the millions of companies they service on a daily basis. Capital One is committed to serving all businesses, from aspiring entrepreneurs and growing companies to more established, high-revenue companies.
Third Point Ventures, an investor in Enigma and one of the early investors in the revolutionary consumer credit platforms Upstart and SoFi, will use its expertise to support Prime in developing securitization programs. While more than 10% of consumer credit is securitized each year, less than 1% of small business loans are securitized, which limits capital liquidity and the availability of finance.
Customers Bank is one of the top 100 digital forward banks in the country with almost $ 20 billion in assets that have used technology to invest in approximately 347,000 Paycheck Protection Program loans with a total value of. to participate $ 10 billion through the COVID-19 pandemic and recently launched a blockchain-based real-time payment platform for cryptocurrency and digital asset institutions.
NEA is a leading global venture capital firm and an early investor in Enigma. NEA partnered with founders on the first go-to-market strategy for many successful platforms such as Jet.com and Coursera.
“Building on our success in consumer digital lending, bringing digital lending to the SMB market is a logical and important strategic priority,” said Customers Bank President & CEO Sam Sidhu. “We are excited to be a co-creator of Prime using insightful data to develop and shape products and services to meet the specific needs of each current and potential borrower, depositor and specialty finance client as we help them forge ahead. “
CEO of Enigma Hicham Oudghiri will serve as Prime’s Executive Chairman and Interim CEO during the transition period. The new management team will be deployed in the first half of 2022. “We are excited to see what the months ahead are as Prime’s mission is to enable growth and lending to all types of communities,” said Oudghiri.
About Enigma
Enigma provides comprehensive information on the identity and financial health of every small and medium-sized business around the world The United States. By developing better data from hundreds of public and third-party sources, we aim to tell the full story of every business so that businesses of all sizes can access the financial services they need to grow and thrive. Financial firms from the world’s largest banks to the unicorns of tomorrow are using Enigma’s data to better serve their small and medium-sized business customers. Learn more at https://enigma.com
About Capital One
Capital one® offers a wide range of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses, and commercial customers. Capital One Business offers a diverse range of financial products, tools and services designed specifically for small businesses, including credit cards with unlimited rewards and banking products and services. Capital One Business is committed to nurturing the bold entrepreneurship that is at the heart of American small businesses. We focus on listening to and learning from the millions of companies we serve every day to ensure that our products, services and experiences work as well as them.
About Third Point Ventures
Third Point Ventures is the emerging technology investment arm of Third Point LLC. Third Point Ventures, founded in 2000, pursues opportunities in multi-tiered investments in private companies that enhance public market insights and expertise while balancing risk and reward for superior risk-adjusted returns.
Via the customer bank
The customer bank is a full service bank with $ 19.1 billion in assets September 30, 2021, and a wholly owned Customers Bancorp, Inc. (NYSE: CUBI). A member of the Federal Reserve System with deposits insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Customers Bank is an equal opportunity lender providing a variety of banking and credit services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, individuals, and families. Services and products are available wherever legally permitted, via mobile-first apps, online portals and a network of offices and branches. Customers Bank offers blockchain-based digital payments through the Customers Bank Instant Token™ (CBIT), which enables customers to make real-time payments in US dollars 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. More at www.kundenbank.com.
About NEA
New Enterprise Associates, Inc. (NEA) is a global venture capital firm focused on helping entrepreneurs build transformative companies across multiple phases, sectors, and regions. With almost $ 24 billion of accumulated tied capital since the company was founded in 1977, NEA has invested in technology and healthcare companies at all stages of a company’s life cycle, from seed to IPO. The company’s long track record of investing includes more than 230 portfolio companies’ initial public offerings and more than 390 mergers and acquisitions. www.nea.com.
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SOURCE Enigma Technologies, Inc.
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