At the same time, Creditspring has bolstered its bench strength through a new advisory board with the experience and expertise of fintech entrepreneur Brian Norton, MIT microeconomics professor Parag Pathak and Credit Suisse Managing Director Jason Wortendyke.

Creditspring was founded by Neil Kadagathur and Aravind Chandrasekaran based on the conviction that the overpriced and overcomplicated consumer credit market in the UK was leaving too many people on a financial knife-edge, one micro-crisis away from disaster. Drawing on their own experiences in the financial industry, having between them worked for names such as Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, they set out to give people the credit they deserve: simpler, safer, cheaper.

Neil says: “What do you do when the fridge breaks, the MOT bill is bigger than expected or your child has an unexpected school trip? For too many people, it’s a very narrow and very scary list of options. We’re building a product to change that. This investment will help us give people a better option, and the belief and support that Chip, Brian, Parag and Jason have demonstrated by joining us makes me extremely confident that this will succeed in addressing the UK market’s needs.”

Chip Dunn brings more than 22 years of experience in principal investing, M&A and strategic advisory. As lead investor and Non-Executive Chairman of the Board, he will be closely involved with the business as it develops.

On the advisory board, Creditspring welcomes:
• Brian Norton, a tech and finance entrepreneur who started Future Finance, Europe’s first private student lending company.
• Parag Pathak, Professor of Microeconomics at MIT. Ranked as one of the top 25 economists under 45 by the IMF, he will help Creditspring incorporate lessons from academic theory into practice, something he has done with education reform in the US.
• Jason Wortendyke, Managing Director at Credit Suisse’s Investment Banking and Capital Markets division, who brings to bear an extensive professional network, as well as a wealth of experience advising companies.

Chip Dunn comments: “I’m thrilled to join Creditspring as an investor and board member. They are building a fantastic team and great business model on a solid technological base. What’s more, they’re fulfilling a genuine social and market need - I’m looking forward to working with Creditspring as they go from launch to market leader, starting in 2018.”

Creditspring has applied to the FCA for full permission for consumer credit, with plans to release more details and launch their first product in early 2018.

“We’re creating a completely new way for people who want to take control of their financial wellbeing and protect themselves from unexpected shocks,” says Aravind. “We wish we could disclose more, but suffice to say this investment of capital and market experience is a huge step towards that goal.”