Autoloans Company Lendbuzz Secures $30 Million in Funding

Boston-headquartered car financing service Lendbuzz Funding LLC has raised $30 million in financing, the company announced Tuesday. The round was led by BHI, the U.S. division of Israel-based Bank Hapoalim, by Viola credit, the growth and venture lending arm of Israel-based Viola Group, and by U.S.-based ConnectOne Bank.

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Founded in 2015 by Israel-born CEO Amitay Kalmar and chief technology officer Dan Raviv, Lendbuzz partners with auto dealerships to offer loans to consumers with sparse U.S. credit history, such as international students and expats. The company, which currently offers its services in most U.S. states, says it reviews loan requests within 24 hours and transfers money immediately upon approval. Since its establishment, the company raised $43 million in both debt and equity funding.

Lendbuzz uses machine learning and statistical algorithms to analyze the borrower profiles and assess credit risk, Mr. Raviv said in a statement. Before joining the company Mr. Raviv was a researcher at MIT.

The company will use the funding to grow its platform, Mr. Kalmar said in a statement.

Earlier this month, Israel-based online lender BlueVine Capital Inc. secured a $200 million credit line with Credit Suisse to offer small and medium-sized businesses capital financing. In February, Israeli alternative financing provider Behalf Inc. raised $150 million in a debt financing round in which Viola Credit also participated. In January, e-lending startup Ezbob IT Ltd. raised 15 million GBP. Operating mainly in the U.K., Ezbob was founded by Israelis and has a development center in the country.