Goldman Sachs to take on P2P lenders in UK expansion
INVESTMENT banking giant Goldman Sachs is considering launching a consumer lending arm in the UK, competing with the likes of Zopa and RateSetter.
The US financial behemoth is reportedly looking to expand its retail banking business in the UK, initially with savings accounts but potentially moving into lending too.
Goldman Sachs has traditionally been known for wealth management and investment banking services. However, last year it began offering high-interest online savings accounts in the US which could be opened with deposits of just $1 (76p), and followed this up by launching Marcus By Goldman Sachs, an online consumer lending platform.
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Now the Financial Times reports that the bank may be looking to replicate this approach in the UK, with plans to unveil an online deposit business by the middle of 2018.
Stephen Scherr, head of strategy at Goldman Sachs is quoted as saying: “Much like in the US, we’re aiming to offer consumers easy-to-use and higher-returning savings options than [they] might have elsewhere.”
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Scherr confirmed that the next step would be to launch a consumer-lending arm, taking on the UK’s big P2P names.
Marcus, which offers loans of up to $30,000 to consumer borrowers, has already passed $1bn in loans since launching in October 2016 with the target of passing $2bn by the end of this year.
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