Crowdfunding platform Geldvoorelkaar.nl recently started origination of loans under the Dutch government COVID support BMKB-C scheme for SMEs. Local SMEs will be able to access funding from this new source, creating new investment opportunities for retail investors at the same time.
Last year, the platform received accreditation to originate loans for SMEs that are backed by the Dutch government under the Dutch COVID-19 protection scheme, BMKB-C. This accreditation came about following a partnership that was struck with a European institutional investor, whose investment secured Geldvoorelkaar.nl’s approval for accreditation by the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO).
Particularly, during the pandemic many small and medium enterprises have struggled and continue to struggle to offer potential investors the level of security required to make investments. In order to boost funding and encourage investment, governments act as guarantors, making it more inviting for retail investors to invest.
Geldvoorelkaar.nl was one of the first among the top Dutch P2P platforms to receive this BMKB-C accreditation from the RVO, the results of which will expand the funding options for local SMEs in the Netherlands. Geldvoorelkaar.nl remains passionate about supporting SMEs in good and bad times.
This March, the platform published its loan under the BMKB-C government protection scheme and it plans to get the BMKB-C credit granted to a range of financially healthy companies that are simply struggling with a liquidity shortage due to pandemic related closures.
Small businesses form the heart of Dutch towns and cities and Geldvoorelkaar.nl is helping to broaden access to this essential funding to help small businesses and entrepreneurs to survive and thrive.
Instrumental to the process which led to the accreditation upon receipt of institutional funding was pan-European fintech, CrossLend. The Berlin-based digital platform facilitates collaborations between loan originators, such as Geldvoorelkaar.nl, and institutional investors, such as the investor involved in this case.
It is becoming clear that the ideal investor might not necessarily be found within the borders of the Member State where the lender is located. CrossLend’s digital tools make cross-border collaborations much easier. Particularly in this case, the benefits of the collaboration are far-reaching, since a number of SMEs will be able to weather the storm of the pandemic as a result.
Edwin Adams, Director & Founder of Geldvoorelkaar.nl, says: “Retail investors now have an opportunity to invest in these Dutch government backed loans. I am 100% sure that this will also lead to a positive and responsible contribution to the financeability of small and medium businesses in the Netherlands during the COVID crisis and in future times to come’’.
About Geldvoorelkaar.nl
Since its inception, Geldvoorelkaar.nl has facilitated a sum in excess of €229 million in credit to over 1,700 SMEs across a variety of sectors. Geldvoorelkaar.nl is the largest platform of its kind in the Dutch market and has been recognised as the market leader since 2019.
About CrossLend
CrossLend is a FinTech company that provides full spectrum technology for loan asset transactions. Its mission is to make the world’s lending and investment ecosystem more efficient, transparent, and profitable. Supervised by BaFIN and CSSF, CrossLend is backed by an array of prestigious equity investors from Europe and the US, including Mouro Capital (formerly Santander InnoVentures), Lakestar, CME Ventures, Earlybird, ABN AMRO’s Digital Impact Fund, solarisBank, and the Luxembourg Future Fund (EIF and SNCI).
