LONDON, December 2008 – Borro.com www.borro.com, the UK’s leading online pawnbroker, today announced it is increasing the upper limit of its loan range to ?1 million to meet the increasing demand from home owners, business owners, property developers and city financiers for liquidity-on-demand. With the government’s bank bail-out yet to affect any real change in credit availability – to even the most credit-worthy – Borro.com continues to double its loan book every month.
In the last two months Borro.com has seen a significant increase in business owners, property developers, and city financiers plugging their credit short-falls by securing loans of ?10,000+ against fine jewellery, high-end Swiss watches, luxury cars including Ferrari’s, Bentley’s and Lambourghini’s, fine art and even yachts. The proceeds of these loans are used for a variety of reasons that include bridge financing to close deals already in progress, buying time while finances are being restructured for the long-term, providing capital to acquire certain assets, investing in new business and product development, and funding seasonality, customer payment and general working capital issues.
Paul Aitken, Founder and CEO of Borro.com commented, “The government bail-out of the banks has been slow to take effect. Banks just aren’t lending. So clients are coming to us because we offer quick, relatively cheap short-term liquidity – and we do not scrutinize their business motives or personal financial status. We don’t need to. Our business is about making secure loans against personal valuables at the fairest valuation and best rates in the industry.”
“To meet client demand, we are now able to provide guaranteed short-term loans from as little as ?100 to as much as ?1,000,000 – to anyone who has items of value” adds Mr. Aitken. “Our core customer is new to what we refer to as ‘pawn-lending’ and they typically borrow ?500 to ?1,000 against jewellery or watches to cover education or household-related expenditures. But in recent weeks, we have seen a surge in interest from the small business owner for much larger loans. We hope our decision to offer loans up to ?1 million will help meet that demand.”
With the lower costs of operating online, Borro.com is also able to offer the lowest interest rates in the industry when compared to alternatives such as an unapproved overdraft, or ‘payday loans’ (which can charge as much as 25% interest per month or more). On a ?1,000 loan, Borro.com charges a monthly interest rate of 4%, which is about the cost of a bank overdraft letter. Interest, however, is not compounded daily or monthly as with credit cards or payday loans, and there are no redemption penalties or credit checks. Loans over ?100,000 are 3% per month, simple interest for a period of up to six months.
Borro.com’s online approach makes pawnbroking more accessible than ever. It is discreet, safe and fast, with loans processed in 24-48 hours. The economic climate in tandem with its unique approach means that 75% of Borro.com’s clients are completely new to pawnbroking. Furthermore its average loan has increased to ?1,000, which is ten times the industry average.
Loans are processed in 24 to 48 hours by visiting www.borro.com and entering details on the item(s) to borrow against. Borro.com then sends out a pre-paid Royal Mail Special Delivery pack which is then returned via courier to our central London vault. Items are safely stored and fully insured for the duration of the loan. For loans over ?5,000, Borro.com offers a more personalized service, including discreet home collection to anywhere in the UK.
For more information, please contact the Borro.com press team:
Martin Campbell
Beacon Strategic PR
+44 (0)7802 634 695
martin@beaconstrategic.com
Caroline Fosbury
Fosbury PR
+44 (0) 7973318973
caroline@fosburypr.com
About Borro.com
Borro.com is headquartered in Oxford, with offices in London. The company was founded in 2008 by Paul Aitken who previously founded Movota which was sold to Bertelsmann in 2005. The business received growth funding from European Founders Fund (Facebook, Linked-In, Alando.de, Jamba!) and Eden Ventures (Apertio, Truphone, We7.com).
As the UK’s first online pawnbroker, Borro.com is changing the face of pawnbroking by offering consumers a discrete, safe and hassle-free way to borrow money against their personal valuables. Borro.com uses Royal Mail Special Delivery as well as a home collection service to lend ?100 to ?100,000 — in up to 48 hours — against jewelry, watches, art and sports memorabilia. Borro.com lends up to 40% of the value of items pledged by its customers for a period of six months at a ‘simple’ interest rate of 3% to 6% per month, depending on the amount borrowed. All transactions are governed under the Consumer Credit Act.
Editor Notes
•Fee Cost Comparison: Assuming ?600 loan over a three month period:
Bank Unplanned Overdraft Fees (average for three major banks)
oInterest: 5-7% (total for 3 months) = ?36
o Monthly Fees: ?15 per month (for 3 months) = ?45
o Daily Fees: ?20 per letter (max 10 per month) = ?200
Pay Day Loan ( 25%+ per month, compounded interest) = ?450
BORRO (max 6% per month, simple interest) = ?108
For more detail on the calculation of these charges visit www.BORRO.com/what-it-costs.
•Loans may be repaid at any time with no “redemption” penalty. Interest is also not compounded, but charged at a ‘simple’ monthly rate of no more than 6% (less for larger loans). Interest accumulates and is payable when the loan is repaid. Upon repayment the items pledged are returned. If a customer is unable to repay a loan at the end of the six month period and the loan is not extended, Borro.com will sell the item on behalf of the customer, with a legal obligation to get the best price possible. The proceeds are returned to the customer less the interest accrued. For information on how BORRO works, please visit www.BORRO.com/how-it-works.
•BORRO Limited has a Consumer Credit Licence issued under Number 620035, and is regulated by The Office of Fair Trading. BORRO Limited’s registered address is is Seebeck House, One Seebeck Place, Knowlhill, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, MK5 8FR and the company registration number is 6573695.
Martin Campbell
Beacon Strategic PR
Caroline Fosbury
Fosbury PR
Tell: 4407802634695
Email: martin@beaconstrategic.com
Website: http://www.borro.com
