JM Financial buys 10% stake in P2P startup Fairassets Tech

Financial services firm JM Financial has acquired about 10 per cent stake in peer-to-peer (P2P) lending startup Fairassets Technologies India.
In a BSE filing today, JM Financial said its subsidiary JM Financial Products has executed the agreement to acquire securities representing up to 9.84 per cent on a fully diluted basis of the total paid up capital of Fairassets Technologies India.
Fairassets is engaged in the business of operating a portal and a mobile app that provides a virtual P2P lending marketplace.
P2P lending refers to providing loans to individuals or businesses through online services which bring together lenders and borrowers.

It is a new concept in India, but is growing globally in countries like the UK and the US.
In 2015, the UK granted USD 32 billion P2P loans, while the US saw USD 22 billion financing.
In India, Reserve Bank is likely to bring the nascent peer-to-peer (P2P) lending under regulation and will also consult regulator Sebi before finalising the norms.
RBI had recently released a consultation paper on this segment.