Mintos, a Latvian P2P lending startup, which provides a platform for investors to finance nonbank lender loans, has raised $2.2 million in a seed funding round led by Riga, Latvia-based VC Skillion Ventures.
The year-old company helps its investors find loans they can fund or buy from alt-lenders who are looking to liquidate their investment.
“We are doing something that has not been done in P2P lending industry so far, at least in Europe, if not at all. Whereas, previously, nonbank lenders that wanted to fund their loans via a P2P lending model had to create their own platforms, now they can connect to the Mintos platform as a single marketplace where we connect investors with borrowers,” said Mintos CEO and Cofounder Martins Sulte in an interview with TechCrunch.
And, so far, the company’s business model seems to be striking a chord with investors in the region with $14.3 million in loans traded through its marketplace. “Investors are coming from 40 countries, while loans are originated in Estonia, Georgia, Latvia and Lithuania, and soon also the Czech Republic and Poland, with several other countries in the pipeline,” he added.