Online lenders broke into a key consumer segment traditionally owned by big banks several years ago, taking billions in business from Wall Street titans.
Now, some of them are slowing growth expectations, as financial markets tighten in the face of rising US unemployment. They're not alone - big banks are cutting Wall Street job postings, and leading investment firms are scaling back open roles, as well. However, for many of these companies, they're in jeopardy of seeing a sustained increase in potential demand at a time when there is little supply to go around.
On Deck Capital ($ONDK) job postings are down more than 82% since mid-March. Shares have plummeted to $1.55 as of mid-day trading March 31, or more than 60% on the year so far.
Lending Club ($LC) job posts are down 74% since mid-March. Shares are down 32%, putting its decline far behind that of On Deck.
Since November 2019, Kabbage ($PRIVATE:KABBAGE) job listings fell 94%. The company has taken on a total of $2.5 billion in venture and debt funding since its 2008 founding.
SoFi ($PRIVATE:SOFI) saw job postings decline 29% from February 2020.
A mid-2019 investment round from the Qatar Investment Authority valued SoFi at more than $4 billion. Backers include private equity firm Silver Lake and Founders Fund, among others.
About the Data:
Thinknum tracks companies using the information they post online - jobs, social and web traffic, product sales and app ratings - and creates data sets that measure factors like hiring, revenue and foot traffic. Data sets may not be fully comprehensive (they only account for what is available on the web), but they can be used to gauge performance factors like staffing and sales.
Further Reading:
- Healthcare leaders Humana and Cigna boost hiring even as shares are poleaxed
- Philips job postings soar as Dutch tech company staffs up to fight pandemic
- Wall Street sees job postings fall as Coronavirus crisis takes hold
