iwoca receives 230 million euros to support SME loans

Financial technology company iwoca receives €230 million funding line from Barclays and Värde Partners to meet growing demand for SME lending.

London/Frankfurt - iwoca, a digital SME lender, has received a €230 million funding facility from Barclays Bank PLC ("Barclays") and Värde Partners. This enables iwoca to meet the growing demand for working capital loans for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which is often not met by traditional banks. The funding from Barclays and Värde Partners helps to meet the needs of small and medium-sized enterprises and to consider alternative financing options in the generally difficult market environment.

iwoca will provide funding of over €100 million in 2023 for our German customers alone. We are currently in the process of substantially expanding our refinancing lines for the German market again in order to meet the increasing demand in Germany in 2024.

Fabian Platzen, General Manager of iwoca Germany

iwoca, founded in 2012, has since originated loans totaling 2.9 billion euros, of which more than 400 million euros have been disbursed in Germany. The company entered the German market in 2015 and in the first three quarters of 2023 recorded its strongest growth to date since its launch. The company's loan book now stands at almost €100 million and iwoca has been consistently profitable for the last four quarters.

According to iwoca's latest SME Index, 85 percent of the financing experts surveyed state that traditional banks are more restrictive in granting loans to SMEs. At the same time, 73 percent of experts expect demand for SME loans to increase by the end of the year. The extended refinancing line enables iwoca to cover part of the increasing demand from SMEs.

The new financing strengthens our position even more. It enables us to help small and medium-sized enterprises, which form the backbone of our economy, in a time of economic uncertainty. iwoca supports them with simple and flexible debt capital to help them develop and achieve their goals.

Christoph Rieche, CEO and Co-Founder of iwoca

iwoca was founded in London by Christoph Rieche from Germany and his business partner James Dear with the aim of facilitating access to credit for the self-employed and small businesses. Since entering the German market in 2015, iwoca has grown into a major fintech loan provider specializing in the needs of small businesses.

Barclays Corporate and Investment Bank provides financing, strategy and risk management services and advice to asset managers, financial institutions, governments, supranational organizations and corporate clients. Värde Partners, on the other hand, is an investment company that specializes in loans and credit-related assets and was founded in 1993. The company has invested over USD 95 billion in credit and liquidity in public and private markets, with a focus on North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.