Peer To Peer Network (PTOP)

[PennyPlayer3]

Aug 05, 2014 (ACCESSWIRE via COMTEX) -- After Pioneering Peer-to-Peer Advice, PFNI is Now Expanding into the Peer-to-Peer Lending Arena.
LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 5, 2014 / The Psychic Friends Network, Inc. (OTCQB: PFNI), a broad-based marketing and entertainment company providing peer-to-peer advice services for over two decades, today announced that it has acquired 100% of the assets of 321Lend, Inc., a late development stage US peer-to-peer lending company. Headquartered in San Francisco, California, 321Lend will operate as a subsidiary of PFNI.

Under the terms of the acquisition, the three co-founders of 321Lend, with backgrounds in financial services, technology, strategy consulting and consumer products, will continue to serve 321Lend in various executive roles. Additionally, Shin Hwang, 321Lend's CEO and co-founder, has been appointed to the Board of Directors of Psychic Friends Network.

As a subsidiary of PFNI, 321Lend is developing, and will soon be delivering, an online lending platform that enables borrowers to obtain a fixed-rate personal loan, and investors to purchase notes backed by payments made on the loans. 321Lend's platform, http://www.321Lend.com is designed to be easy to use so that potential members can join its community within minutes. Borrowers create listings for a fixed-rate personal loan, and are then funded by investors who chose their target returns and build their portfolios. 321Lend provides transactional services including screening borrowers for loan eligibility and facilitating payments to lenders.

Peer-to-peer lending is an alternative to the current banking system, with significantly lower operating costs than conventional banking and consumer finance institutions.

PFNI CEO Marc Lasky stated "In the 1990's, PFN was at the forefront of creating the peer-to-peer advice services industry, by being one of the first companies to connect its users directly to their advisors of choice. In 2014 thus far, peer-to-peer lending has originated over $2 billion in loans, and its still in its infancy stage. With that kind of base, and PFNI's peer-to-peer track record of success, you don't have to be psychic to predict that we will be at the forefront of this emerging market."

"Since 2007, peer-to-peer lending has been one of the fastest growing industries, with year over year, triple digit growth. As of the end of 2013, the industry has grown to become a $5B+ market. Though it has had stellar growth, it is still at a very early stage market in a huge multi-trillion dollar industry. Credit card balances alone in the US represent an $850B+ opportunity", said Shin Hwang, CEO of 321Lend. "We believe that the Peer-to-Peer lending business model will revolutionize the financial industry."