San Francisco’s AutoFi is shifting into high gear with its launch of a “lending as a service” division aimed at business customers. In a press release, the financial technology company (FinTech) said the new business division will offer “a more flexible finance solution for vehicle purchase.”
“In the pursuit of a better car buying experience, our industry has been on a trajectory of incremental improvements to streamline and complete vehicle sales online,” said Kevin Singerman, CEO and co-founder of AutoFi. He said the lending-as-a-service program will allow “the industry to take a major leap forward by … integrating financial services into automotive eCommerce.”
In general, AutoFi said it “is an eCommerce software platform that allows a car buyer … to purchase and finance a car entirely online. AutoFi’s platform connects an auto dealer’s customers to a network of lenders, providing a fast, mobile-first checkout experience.”
Jonathan Schenk, AutoFi’s chief revenue officer said the company’s business customers include online dealers, banks and rental car companies. “We believe forming this new business division is a logical next step for our company,” he said.
“As more and more consumers turn to buying and selling cars online, AutoFi’s solutions have helped us accelerate the growth of our end-to-end eCommerce platform and build our … brand,” said Mark Roszkowski, chief revenue officer at Vroom.
Industry veteran Matthew Orlando, who joined AutoFi in mid-2020, will head the new division as vice president of enterprise partnerships.
The online sale of automotive vehicles is a growth market. For example, Berlin-based Auto1 Group has said it plans to go public in the first quarter of this year. Auto1 serves both consumers and dealers.
The company said in a press release that it plans to raise about $1.2 billion from the stock sale. Auto1 said it would put about three-quarters of that back into its business, which includes its Autohero website brand.
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