Digital Lending & Alt-Credit Platforms

Enova International subsidiary OnDeck has rolled out fully automated small business loan approvals powered by AI and machine learning. The system is designed to verify applicants and generate stipulation free offers within minutes, reducing reliance on manual review, and OnDeck is applying the new automation directly to its core lending platform to speed up processing for small business borrowers. Enova International positions itself as a technology-driven consumer finance provider, using data and analytics to offer online credit products to individuals and businesses across the US, Brazil, and other markets. The key signpost to watch is the share of small business applications that move to fully automated, stipulation free approvals over the next few quarters, paired with stable loss metrics in Enova's regular credit updates.

AIRA Factoring Public Company Limited, or AF, announced that digital lending transactions through its Digital Supply Chain Financing platform have surpassed 1 billion baht, setting a new record for the company. The achievement stems from collaboration with NEC Corporation (Thailand) Limited and TASConnect in developing lending solutions for entrepreneurs. Akarawit Suksai, Chief Executive Officer of AIRA Factoring Public Company Limited, said the platform helps transform working capital processes into digital form, enabling businesses to access liquidity faster and strengthening the capabilities of buyers, suppliers, and financial institutions, while integrating ESG metrics into a sustainable financing framework. The company expects the platform to grow at around 7% amid continuously rising user numbers. Hiroki Yoshifuji, President of NEC Corporation (Thailand) Limited, said the platform enhances the ability of SMEs and Thai businesses to access funding quickly. The three companies shared their perspectives at the Digital Converge 2026 event on applying digital technology in the supply chain. The solution is built on NEC's highly secure architecture, supporting large organizations and reducing operational risk.

Uzbek fintech Uzum, which is backed by Tencent, says it sees no obstacle to attracting US investors despite ongoing trade tensions between Washington and Beijing. The company has raised money from investors including Tencent and Oman's sovereign funds, and its latest round valued it at $2.3 billion. Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer Nikolay Seleznev told Bloomberg's Abeer Abu Omar on Horizons Middle East & Africa that over the past 18 months Uzum has drawn investors from China, the US and the Gulf, and that Uzbekistan is becoming a safe haven for international investment. Seleznev said an IPO is not a final destination but one of the company's stepping stones, and that Uzum plans to become the first technology company from Uzbekistan to be publicly traded. On funding, he said Uzum is scaling its unsecured lending business and has found strong demand for quality issues in local currency in Uzbekistan, while also attracting funding from development banks, including a recently announced increase in its credit facility with the Eurasian Development Bank. He added that a Eurobond is definitely on the company's radar when the situation is right, possibly later this year or early next year.

Upstart Holdings is expanding its credit union network through a partnership with Credit Union of Denver, Colorado's oldest state-chartered credit union, founded in 1931. Credit Union of Denver began lending through Upstart in April 2026, with qualified applicants on Upstart.com who meet the credit union's lending policies receiving tailored offers before being directed to a Credit Union of Denver-branded experience to complete membership applications and loan closing online. The deal adds to Upstart's network of more than 100 banking and credit union partners, and the company says more than 90% of its loans are fully automated without human intervention. Upstart has also been strengthening existing relationships: in September 2026, Commonwealth Credit Union, which serves more than 140,000 members, expanded its partnership with Upstart into home equity lines of credit and indirect auto lending, building on a relationship that began in 2022 with personal lending. In the second quarter of 2026, Upstart reported total originations of $4.2 billion, up 50% year over year, revenues up 42% to $365 million, net income of $16.5 million and adjusted EBITDA of $76.9 million.

The Bank of Thailand is preparing to issue three main measures to tackle the problem of Thai SMEs trapped by limited access to credit. Mr. Vitai Ratanakorn, Governor of the Bank of Thailand, disclosed at the event Thailand Economic Outlook 2027 | New Horizon Beyond the Trap, organised by Krungthep Turakij, that SMEs account for 99.5% of all business entities in the country, or about 3.28 million, and are a source of employment for 13.6 million people, or 70% of total employment, with an economic value of 1.73 trillion baht. SME credit has contracted for 16 consecutive quarters, with the top 30% of SMEs by potential able to access credit at only 21%, compared with large operators, who can access as much as 63%. The three measures consist of the Credit Portal project, a marketplace platform matching SMEs with financial institutions, planned for launch this December and expansion in the first quarter of 2027; a permanent 5-year credit guarantee mechanism, upgraded from the Credit Boost pilot project, funded by contributions from private financial institutions rather than the state budget, targeting lending of about 100 billion baht per year to SMEs with potential, expected to begin early next year; and the Alternative Data Exchange Bureau project, which links alternative data from the public sector, such as water and electricity bills and money transfer and payment histories, to supplement credit bureau checks, expected to begin in the middle to late part of 2027. These measures are expected to push SME credit back into positive growth in 2027. Meanwhile, Mr. Vitai spoke about the flood situation, saying authorities are assessing the true extent of damage, as the situation has dragged on and spread over a wider area than initially estimated, and will affect the country's GDP. The Bank of Thailand is coordinating with commercial banks and specialised financial institutions to speed up assistance to those affected.

SoFi Technologies launched small-business loans in the second quarter of 2026, originating them through its Loan Platform Business rather than its own balance sheet. Management disclosed a three-year, $3 billion agreement with Basepoint Capital plus another partnership worth several hundred million dollars to provide capacity as volumes scale. The platform generated $143.3 million of adjusted net revenues in the second quarter, supported mainly by $3.1 billion of personal loans originated for third parties and referrals, and management expects SMB economics to be similar to or slightly better than existing Loan Platform Business levels. The launch came during a record quarter for lending, with total originations of $14.8 billion, up 69% year over year, including $10.7 billion in personal loans, $2.7 billion in student loans and $1.4 billion in home loans. SoFi shares have fallen 12.2% over the past three months, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate for full-year 2026 EPS was unchanged at 60 cents over the past two months.

FedEx Dataworks and Stripe announced a collaboration that combines FedEx's network with Stripe's financial infrastructure to make financing more accessible to small- and medium-sized businesses. Under the arrangement, FedEx Dataworks will supply Stripe with information that better reflects how SMBs operate, including shipment activity, inventory movement, and fulfillment performance. The company said these real-time operational signals will let Stripe evaluate, approve, and deploy tailored funding more quickly than traditional lending processes, eliminating friction for SMBs. The first joint solution between the two companies is planned for early 2027. Separately, FedEx will begin using Stripe to expand payment options for FedEx customers globally, with the company saying a wider variety of local payment methods will help remove friction so customers can pay how they prefer.

Klarna has deepened its partnership with home furnishing retailer Wayfair to offer eligible customers more flexible payment options. Shoppers will be able to pay in full, split purchases into interest-free installments, or finance larger orders over time. Beginning today, eligible U.S. customers can access always-on 0% APR financing up to 6 months across Wayfair's brands, which include Wayfair, Joss & Main, AllModern, and Birch Lane. Canadian shoppers can avail Klarna's full suite of flexible payment options at Wayfair. Curtis Crawford, a director at Wayfair, said Klarna has been a trusted partner in helping customers shop with confidence and that renewing the relationship was an easy decision.

Pagaya Technologies Ltd. has closed its inaugural Variable Funding Note facility with ATLAS SP Partners, a revolving committed capital structure providing nearly US$700 million of funding capacity for its personal loan platform. The facility allows Pagaya to season loans before securitization, which could improve execution for its AAA-rated PAID platform and broaden institutional investors' access to consumer credit. The new capacity follows the recently upsized US$900 million PAID 2026-5 ABS deal, and together the two reinforce funding depth as a key catalyst for the company's capital-light growth story. Pagaya's narrative projects $2.0 billion in revenue and $394.6 million in earnings by 2029, requiring 13.7% yearly revenue growth and a $272.1 million earnings increase from $122.5 million today. Risks remain around regulatory scrutiny of AI underwriting, customer concentration, and dependence on a concentrated group of funding partners.

Commonwealth Credit Union announced on 23 September 2026 that it has expanded its partnership with Upstart Holdings to include home equity lines of credit and indirect auto lending, building on a personal lending collaboration that began in 2022. The move broadens the credit union's digital lending reach and adds another credit union to Upstart's AI-driven platform across multiple consumer lending products. The expansion modestly reinforces partner confidence and origination volume, though it does not directly address the risk of high default sensitivity to macro conditions. Upstart's narrative projects $2.6 billion in revenue and $408.8 million in earnings by 2029, requiring 30.5% yearly revenue growth and roughly a $359.4 million earnings increase from $49.4 million today, with a $40.13 fair value implying 65% upside to the current price. The OCC's conditional approval for Upstart Bank, N.A. in July 2026 remains relevant, as a bank charter could simplify funding and complement deepening credit union relationships.

SoFi Technologies reported second-quarter adjusted net revenue of $1.2 billion, up 40%, with GAAP net income climbing 61% to $156.6 million. Total deposits ended the period at $45.5 billion, and average deposits made up over 90% of average liabilities, with the rate paid on deposits running 156 basis points below warehouse facilities, which the company says equals about $712.6 million of annualized interest expense savings. Cross-buy reached 51% of new products, up from 43% the prior quarter and 35% a year earlier, while fee-based revenue of $472.3 million made up 39% of total revenue. The lending segment brought in $724.8 million of net revenue, up 63%, on record originations of $14.8 billion, though the Technology Platform segment saw revenue fall 23% from a year earlier partly because a large client left. SoFi and Mastercard also announced that stablecoin settlement is live across SoFi Bank's card program, moving its entire $25 billion card program onto SoFiUSD, a stablecoin the bank itself issues. Wells Fargo analyst Cassie Chan rates the stock a Hold, citing valuation and earnings exposure to loan sales, and short interest stands at 14.63% of the float.

Grab Holdings has agreed to acquire a controlling 60% equity interest in Atome Financial, the digital financial services platform of Advance Intelligence Group Limited, for $1.49 billion in cash, of which $0.26 billion is primary growth capital in Phase 1. The Phase 1 deal is funded entirely from Grab's existing cash and is expected to close by the third quarter of 2027, subject to regulatory approvals, at which point Atome Financial will merge into Grab's Financial Services segment. Grab has also agreed with AIGL and other sellers to purchase the remaining 40% equity interest in a Phase 2 deal, to be priced on Atome Financial's actual financial performance with an equity valuation floor of $2 billion and a cap of $4.5 billion. Atome Financial operates in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand, serves 25 million cumulative transacted users and holds a gross loan portfolio of roughly $1 billion; the combined business is expected to have a gross loan portfolio of more than $6 billion and generate $500 million in adjusted EBITDA by 2028. Grab shares fell 20% over the past three months and nearly 39% year to date, hitting a three-year low after the deal news, though two top executives disclosed fresh share purchases.

Chayo Group Public Company Limited, or CHAYO, is pressing ahead with expanding its personal loan base, focusing on Advance or emergency loans through the Chayo Capital application, targeting an increase of around 5,000 to 10,000 app-based customers this year, up from the current base of around 2,000 to 3,000 such customers. Chief Executive Officer Suksan Yosain opened up that hitting that target will help support revenue from the lending business to expand, from its current share of around 2% of revenue. The main revenue structure still comes from the debt management and debt purchase business at around 90%, followed by debt collection services at around 4-5% and the business of supplying workers to factories at around 3%. As for the earnings outlook for 2026, the company is maintaining its profit target at the parent company level of approximately 300 million baht, after turning a profit of around 201.73 million baht in the first half of 2026. Meanwhile, on the partial repayment of principal on all five series of debentures, namely CHAYO25NA, CHAYO263A, CHAYO26OA, CHAYO273A and CHAYO279A, with a combined value of approximately 3.9329 billion baht, the company plans to repay around 10% of the principal across all five series within 2026. It has already repaid four series, leaving the fifth, which falls due in November 2026, and it has prepared liquidity to cover it. The company has an interest-bearing debt-to-equity ratio of 0.97 times, and stands ready to acquire additional new non-performing debt portfolios at appropriate price levels, while continuing to develop its competitiveness by bringing in technology and artificial intelligence systems to help manage costs more efficiently.

Synchrony Financial is deepening CareCredit's veterinary reach by integrating its financing options directly into Vetspire's AI-enabled practice management platform, bringing payment into the clinical workflow and reducing reliance on separate payment terminals. Vetspire is used by more than 1,000 veterinary hospitals and clinics nationwide, and about 85% of its clinics are already enrolled with CareCredit, leaving the remaining 15% as an opportunity for incremental provider adoption. The companies plan to collect clinic-level performance data to quantify whether the integration improves workflow efficiency and treatment acceptance, and participating practices gain access to CareCredit's marketing resources and business intelligence support. For Synchrony, the deal extends CareCredit into the digital infrastructure surrounding healthcare payments; in the second quarter of 2026, Health & Wellness purchase volume increased 2.1% year over year, primarily on higher Pet spending, while health and wellness loan receivables rose 0.5%.

Asia Plus Securities Company Limited, or ASP, is opening subscriptions for institutional investors and high-net-worth investors to subscribe to the bonds of Money Turbo Public Company Limited, or TURBO, in its 1/2026 issuance, comprising 2 tranches, between 5 and 7 October 2026. The first tranche has a maturity of 2 years, 1 month and 2 days, maturing in 2028, with an interest rate of 5.20% per annum, and the second tranche has a maturity of 3 years, 1 month and 1 day, maturing in 2029, with an interest rate of 5.60% per annum. Interest is paid every 3 months. ASP is one of the underwriters of the bonds, and TURBO will use the proceeds to expand the loan portfolio of the TURBO group. TURBO received a corporate credit rating of BBB- with a Positive outlook from TRIS Rating Company Limited on 28 May 2026. It operates a non-bank financial business covering auto title loans, land title deed loans, nano finance loans, and an insurance brokerage business. For its operating results in the first 6 months of 2026, TURBO had total revenue of 1,676.31 million baht, up from 1,517.55 million baht in the same period last year, and net profit of 329.12 million baht, up from 235.92 million baht, or growth of approximately 39.5% from the same period last year.

Happen Bank, a subsidiary of Happen, Inc. (Nasdaq: HAPN), said it has crossed $10 billion in personal loans sold through its proprietary structured loan certificates programs, HAPS and LENDR. The two programs, launched in April 2023 and June 2025 respectively, together account for the $10 billion total, with HAPS serving as a two-tranche private securitization in which Happen Bank retains the senior note and sells the residual certificate on a pool of loans to a marketplace investor at a predetermined price. LENDR, built on the success of HAPS, offers multiple note tranches, each carrying a credit rating from Fitch, to meet demand from investors seeking an investment grade rating. Clarke Roberts, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Marketplace at Happen Bank, said crossing $10 billion through these programs in just over three years speaks to the value of these structures for investors, adding that Happen Bank was the first in the industry to offer both high-quality personal loans and streamlined financing at scale. Happen Bank, formerly LendingClub Bank, has operated for 20 years and serves more than five million members.

Affirm Holdings has struck a new partnership with Crate & Barrel Holdings, bringing its pay-over-time financing to Crate & Barrel, Crate & Barrel Kids and CB2 customers in the United States and Canada, with biweekly or monthly payment options starting at 0% APR and no late fees or hidden charges. The deal adds Crate & Barrel Holdings, which operates more than 100 stores and websites across the United States and Canada and draws more than 200 million customer visits a year, to Affirm's network of more than 570,000 active merchant partners, broadening its reach in the home-furnishing category. Affirm said the near-term financial impact is difficult to quantify because the companies did not disclose transaction volumes or revenue contribution, and that the partnership's contribution will depend on customer engagement and the volume of purchases financed through Affirm. Stronger usage across Crate & Barrel's brands could gradually increase the partnership's contribution to Gross Merchandise Volume and revenues. Affirm faces competition from Block, which is deepening Afterpay's integration with Cash App, and from PayPal, whose Pay in 4 and Pay Monthly offerings cover purchases up to $10,000. Affirm shares have risen 51.3% over the past six months compared with the industry's 30.2% growth, and the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its 2026 earnings stands at $1.87 per share, followed by 53.3% growth next year.

MercadoLibre's credit portfolio reached $16.4 billion in the second quarter of 2026, marking 75% year-over-year growth, while assets under management rose 68% year over year to $23.2 billion. The company said ecosystemic users, defined as customers using both Marketplace and Mercado Pago, grew 37% year over year in the quarter, and users with a Mercado Pago credit card were two to three times more likely to remain ecosystemic than users without the card. Credit card issuance accelerated to 2.6 million new cards in the second quarter of 2026, up from 1.6 million in the year-ago period. MercadoLibre reported that 15-90-day non-performing loans stood at 7% for the total portfolio and 4.6% for credit cards, both near historical lows. The Zacks Consensus Estimate implies 44.6% year-over-year sales growth for the current fiscal year and a 0.7% decline in earnings per share, with next fiscal year estimates pointing to a 28.9% rise in sales and 43.3% growth in earnings.

Upstart has expanded its partnership with Commonwealth Credit Union to add home equity lines of credit and indirect auto lending, extending a relationship that began in 2022 with personal lending. The Kentucky-headquartered credit union serves more than 140,000 members, and Commonwealth said the move will help it serve members across more borrowing needs, diversify its consumer lending portfolio and deepen relationships with prime borrowers. The expansion comes as Upstart's secured business scales quickly: in the second quarter of 2026, secured originations reached $589 million, rising 218% year over year and 45% sequentially, with auto originations growing about fourfold year over year and home originations roughly doubling. Upstart's broader business also showed stronger momentum in the second quarter of 2026, with total originations of $4.2 billion, up 50% year over year, revenues up 42% to $365 million, net income of $16.5 million and adjusted EBITDA of $76.9 million. More than 100 banks and credit unions already use Upstart's marketplace, and broader adoption of HELOC and auto lending across partners could help diversify its originations mix and underpin continued growth in secured lending.

Fort Smart Service Public Company Limited, or FSMART, expects to benefit from the Cabinet's extension of the Thai Chai Thai Plus program by another 2 months, from October 1 to November 30, 2026, with a total limit of no more than 1,000 baht, which will help boost the purchasing power of the grassroots customer group that forms the core customer base of its Boonterm top-up machine business. Managing Director Narongsak Lertsapthawee disclosed that the operating performance trend in the third quarter of 2026 remains steady compared with the previous quarter and the same period last year, and is considered the lowest point of the year, due to the impact of the rainy season, flooding in many areas, and rising oil prices, which pressured purchasing power. The fourth quarter of 2026 is expected to improve in line with seasonal factors as the Boonterm machines enter their high season. The company is also preparing to launch new services, namely the sale of National Savings Fund lottery tickets, which is awaiting an official launch date from the government, and cross-border money transfers to serve the migrant worker group, expected to begin service in early November, while still awaiting license approval from the Bank of Thailand. The company is maintaining its full-year total revenue growth target of 8-10% from last year, with the Boonterm machine business accounting for approximately 70-75% of revenue, while the lending business is expected to grow the most prominently this year, from a current accumulated loan portfolio of approximately 1.7 to 1.8 billion baht, with a target to expand the portfolio to 2 billion baht by year-end. As for the Gingka EV business, or electric vehicle chargers, the number of charging heads has expanded from approximately 500-600 at the start of the year to approximately 700-800 currently, with a target of 1,000 charging heads by the end of this year. As for the Taobin automated coffee machine business, in which FSMART holds a 26% stake and recognizes its share of profits, there are currently more than 8,000 machines in service, with a target to expand to 10,000 machines.