Peer-to-peer loans pass 300 billion won for first time

The number of peer-to-peer loans more than doubled in just six months, going from 96.9 billion won ($84.5 million) in June last year to over 300 billion won in December.

The change represents a 220.5 percent increase, according to data provided by the Financial Supervisory Service and Financial Services Commission.

The number of users also surged 116.6 percent to 6,632 in June compared to December’s 3,062. The rapid rise in the so-called P2P lending continues to keep the financial authorities on their toes.

The Financial Services Commission enforced P2P lending guidelines in February. The guidelines limit the amount of investment a P2P user can put in. An investor can invest up to 10 million won in a marketplace lending firm. Despite the guidelines, the accumulated transaction from P2P lending stood at 990.1 billion won as of the end of May.

By Park Eun-jee