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[Tokyo Joe]

http://www.lendingstats.com/loansFunded

Not sure how accurate these stats are, but it shows that June 2008 is on track to top June 2007 by about $2M in loans...

May 2008 was Prosper's biggest month ever, also topping May 2007 by over 25%...

This continued a trend first noted in April 2008...  After 8 months of flat-to-fading loan originations that were the subject of many posts, April picked up and since then, Prosper has been showing some signs of life...

I don't know the reason for this, except that there have been some high profile mentions of Prosper lately, and LC limited its operations...

I also don't know if 25% is gonna reduce the burn rate enough to matter (I thought Larsen had wanted 500%), or if the month-to-month decline in May 2008-June 2008 will foreshadow a subsequent decline in July.

So... after nearly a year of looking like it was petering out, there was a little growth spurt...

Pun accidental. 

What can it mean, if anything?

[Urbi_et_Orbi]

One wonders if it is too little, too late?

Funding loans appears to be easy.  It's what happens next that's the problem. 

They can fund all the loans they want, but if 25% of them go bad at rates not adjusted for risk - and no JDB wants to buy them, then it just suggests to me that more funding can only lead to larger collective losses.

Good night, all.

[ira01]

It's probably the effect of hooking up with Web-Bank, allowing Prosper to operate in virtually every state, and to offer higher interest rates nationally. 

[NewHorizon]

Higher rates opens the way for riskier loans to get funded.
A subsequent rise in lates and defaults would surely seem to follow.

Growth spurt?  Growth will continue for as long as Prosper can find new borrowers (like when the rates went up) and new lenders (like the new institutional market).  Don't ask me HOW they'll continue to expand their market.  But I'll not underestimate the imagination of sales people and business strategists.  )

[Urbi_et_Orbi]

I note that the institutional lender platform is available to sole proprietors.

Is this the mechanism one would use to pretend Prosper lending is a business - and allow people to handle their losses in a more tax-efficient manner?

Otherwise, why would a sole proprietor want to go the Institution route - unless the deposit-cap for individual lender accounts is somehow cramping one's lending style?

[nonattender]

Is this the mechanism one would use to pretend Prosper lending is a business - and allow people to handle their losses in a more tax-efficient manner?

Depends.  Is that a rhetorical question?

-t

[Urbi_et_Orbi]

Is this the mechanism one would use to pretend Prosper lending is a business - and allow people to handle their losses in a more tax-efficient manner?

Depends.  Is that a rhetorical question?

-t

No, I am genuinely trying to understand the range of potential benefits of registering on Prosper as a sole proprietor vs. normal individual lender.

[cowdog]

Is this the mechanism one would use to pretend Prosper lending is a business - and allow people to handle their losses in a more tax-efficient manner?

Depends.  Is that a rhetorical question?

-t

No, I am genuinely trying to understand the range of potential benefits of registering on Prosper as a sole proprietor vs. normal individual lender.

I assume an institutional lender could register with an EIN instead of a SS

[Mtnchick]

I assume an institutional lender could register with an EIN instead of a SS

I wonder if they could then be institutional borrowers? 

[Capital_Finance_Group]

I assume an institutional lender could register with an EIN instead of a SS

I wonder if they could then be institutional borrowers? 

Please please please - they may be reading this - we don't need to give them any more new ideas. 

[onthefence]

I don't expect prosper to exceed last months loan funding.  I personally suspect those jumps in amount funded are due to 1 time changes that increase the available pool of borrowers, but does not reflect a true growth trend (such as one that might be gained from increased advertising or word of mouth encouragement).