The presidential race in the U.S. is only beginning, as is the dig for voter-worthy information in the public records of the presidential hopefuls. Reports in Forbes published Wednesday (Aug. 12) have revealed one tidbit of information about one candidate that could give voters insight into his position on the lending market.
Reports said Republican candidate Jeb Bush holds a stake in alternative lending platform Lending Club, according to financial records recently made public. The former governor of Florida only holds a small stake in the company, and reports said that the shares are a “minuscule” part of Bush’s investment portfolio. His net worth is estimated at between $19 million and $22 million.
Still, the information can provide insight into Bush’s stance on the alternative lending market — not necessarily a hot-button topic in the race at this point but likely important to investors and small business borrowers nonetheless, especially as the industry anticipates new regulation from federal authorities.
The Treasury Department, for example, launched a new inquiry into the market only weeks ago.
But reports in Forbes said that the information could signify more broadly that the alternative lending industry is becoming the norm. “The fact that Bush is invested in Lending Club at all,” the report said, “shows just how mainstream alternative lending has become.”
Small business borrowers have reduced their application rates to alternative lenders, but that doesn’t mean the market is shrinking. The data suggests that institutional lenders, which largely turn to alternative lenders’ digital marketplaces to connect to borrowers, are increasing their activity even as traditional bank lending is on the rise.
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