Banking giant Citigroup is throwing its weight behind the FinTech start-up Oodle Car Finance with the announcement of funding for a £100 million warehouse facility.
The start-up uses technology to pair its customers with great cars, some of the UK’s best car dealers and finance.
The partnership is another sign of the growing confidence that some of the world’s largest financial institutions have in the company’s bold vision to revolutionise the industry.
It follows a £60m round of equity investment for Oodle from the global investment firm KKR last year.
The company is breaking the mould of a lender in the used-car market by merging car search and finance into one seamless digital process.
This rapid online operation pairs customers with their perfect cars, some of the UK’s best car dealers and finance in just a few minutes.
The fledgling FinTech from Oxford has already received over a £1.18 billion worth of finance applications and using PPC (Pay Per Click) have generated over 100,000 click-throughs to their dealer partners’ websites.
By working in partnership with some of the best car dealers and by bringing them closer to car buyers, Oodle believes it can achieve its ultimate mission to create a best-in-class consumer experience, where both customers and dealers reap the benefits.
“The Citigroup funding is a key milestone that will help us support innovation and turn the used-car market on its head, transforming the way car purchases are financed,” said Oodle CEO Jonny Clayton.
“It’s a vote of confidence from yet another credible financial institution – a significant endorsement of our radical business model.
“The partnership gives us room to grow and the funding means we can pass on the benefits of more affordable loan products to our customers.”
The Citigroup funding caps an incredible few months for the business, during which they have won Lender of the Year at the 2017 F&I Conference and Awards and appointed new chairman Roger Lovering – the consumer finance expert responsible for the successful launch of Santander Cards.