Consumer Lending Startup Blender Raises $22 Million in Debt Financing, Equity

Israel-based consumer lending startup Blender P2P Israel Ltd. has raised $22 million in debt financing and equity, the company announced Monday. The debt round was led by Paris-based hedge fund Eiffel Investment Group SAS. The equity round was led by Thailand-based Asia Plus Group Holdings PCL, with participation from San Francisco-headquartered early-stage venture capital firm Blumberg Capital and Israeli construction company Aviv Group. The company did not disclose the financial details, but a person familiar with the matter told Calcalist on condition of anonymity that the equity raised amounted to $5 million.

Founded in 2014 and based in Ramat Gan, a town in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, Blender offers an online service that allows users to apply for a loan of up to 10,000 euros (approximately $12,350) or become lenders themselves. Blender has provided approximately $150 million in loans and has 250,000 registered clients, the company said in a statement. Blender is currently active in Israel, Italy, and the Baltic States and employs 55 people, according to the statement. The company said it intends to use the capital raised to expand to Poland and additional central European countries.