SMB Financing FinTech Credibly Announces ProApprove Acquisition, $350M in Funding

Credibly, a Michigan-based FinTech lending platform, on Monday (June 13) announced a pair of deals it said will drive growth in the home repair-financing space.

The first of the pair of deals Credibly announced was its 2021 acquisition of ProApprove, which helps homeowners quickly finance needed repairs. The platform lets contractors connect homeowners with sources of funds through an app before beginning work.

The second deal Credibly announced was the closing of a forward-flow agreement. Under the arrangement, alternative investment firm Castlelake agreed to fund up to $350 million in contract receivables from ProApprove, which will service the contracts.

“With ProApprove, contractors get the certainty of getting paid, while allowing their customers to pay for the project in installments,” Credibly said.

Homeowners likely to avail themselves of the service will have “prime, near-prime, and non-prime credit,” the announcement said.  Participating contractors benefit because they are able to reach customers “across the credit spectrum.”

“Contractors who offer financing solutions through ProApprove will no longer need to turn down sales due to a homeowner’s inability to pay for a project upfront, helping those contractors grow their book of business,” Ryan Rosett, co-founder and co-chief executive of Credibly, said.

Credibly, which was founded in 2010, said it has provided more than $2 billion in capital to small- to medium-sized businesses.

Castlelake, which focuses on direct lending in several sectors, reported that it manages about $21 billion in assets.