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Neyber bets big on its lending business  

LONDON-based lending startup Neyber has raised £25 million in recent months.

The Goldman Sachs-backed lending business has secured extra funding from current investors, including police savings fund Police Mutual, and family offices.


The company is also chasing another major equity growth phase that is expected to add millions more to its cash reserves.

It recorded losses of around £18m in 15 months ending March last year.

The firm was also forced to forgo around £1m in interest revenue following an operational fault, leading to compensation for some customers.

The loans granted to employees at its client companies helped them consolidate debts or access short-term loans, which are then repaid through salary deductions.

It also makes loans available through internal staff benefit systems.

Monica Kalia, one of the founders, of the business said her company spent heavily after it started its operations in 2013 to secure clients and others as the business was focussing on sustainability and profits.

Kalia was quoted by The Sunday Telegraph: “Through the 2018 financial year, we were in an investment period establishing the business.”

The Indian-origin businesswoman noted that her firm gave businesses a way to help improve the financial position of staff.

Kalia added: “Employers have increasingly been looking at issues such as financial stress, but other than credit unions, there was no employer-based lending model. There is an opportunity to provide fair financial products through the employer channel, and the importance of financial well being is becoming more entrenched in UK corporates.”

The firm was founded by former Goldman Sachs top executives Martin Ijaha, Kalia, and Ezechi Britton of Credit Suisse.

The startup inked deal with 400 clients, including Asda, Co-op, Bupa, Harrods, and others, lending around £175m to their staff members.

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Asda sales plunge, chair blames government of low confidence

The supermarket struggled with technology issues during a lengthy effort to separate IT systems from former owner Walmart.

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Asda reports sharp sales fall, chair blames government for 'killing consumer confidence'

Highlights

  • Asda sales fall 3.8 per cent to £5.1 bn in three months to September, with comparable store sales down 2.8 per cent.
  • Chair Allan Leighton blames IT system problems from separating technology from former owner Walmart.
  • Leighton criticises government for hampering business investment and depressing consumer sentiment.
Asda has reported a sharp sales decline while criticising the government for "killing confidence" among consumers, though its chair admitted "self-inflicted" technology problems had set back turnaround plans by six months.

Total sales at Britain's third-largest supermarket fell 3.8 per cent to £5.1 bn in the three months ending September compared with the same period last year, reversing 0.2 per cent growth from the previous quarter. Comparable store sales dropped 2.8 per cent.

Chair Allan Leighton, who returned last year to revive the business for a second time, told the guardian that the fall in sales and market share was "totally self-inflicted." The supermarket struggled with technology issues during a lengthy effort to separate IT systems from former owner Walmart.

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