Misys Helps Banks Play The Alt-Lending Game

Misys is offering banking clients access to its P2P lending software, reports said Tuesday (Jan. 17).

The financial technology firm revealed it will offer banks access to its peer-to-peer lending technology to help banks compete with younger alternative lenders in the industry. Misys’ solution enables banks to link individuals and small businesses to online investors and will be available to both retail and corporate banks, the firm said.

Reports cited rivals Lending Club, OnDeck Capital and Prosper as online alternative lenders that were able to compete with banks to service borrowers by offering a seamless, digital experience.

“Banks are losing market share to P2P platform providers,” Misys Senior Product Officer Jean-Cedric Jollant told Reuters. “By embedding crowdlending into the overall credit lifecycle, a bank can maintain and expand its client base, recapture business from alternative finance marketplaces and boost lending growth.”

Misys’ offering is a new take on how traditional banks fit into the broader lending ecosystem. Since the rise of alternative lending following the 2008 financial crisis, many FinTech players emerged first to compete with the banks; later, traditional FIs began to partner with these firms and integrate their digital lending and financial service technologies into their own systems.

Jollant told reporters that Misys is in discussions “with a number of interested banks in the U.S., Europe and India” but declined to mention specifics.

Misys had a rough year last year when it suddenly decided to scrap its IPO in what would have been London’s largest tech float. Analysts predicted Misys would have been valued at nearly $7 billion after its debut on the London Stock Exchange, which was canceled last October; the company blamed market uncertainty for the move.

“Despite encouraging institutional support, Misys … has decided not to proceed with its potential initial public offering at the current time due to market conditions,” the company said in a statement at the time.