Enova Pulls Grasshopper Bancorp Acquisition, Faces Legal Probes

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.