RBS to send small firms to peer-to-peer lenders

RBS, Britain's biggest lender to small businesses, said it expects to refer thousands of firms to Funding Circle and Assetz Capital following a pilot that begins next week in Scotland and the south-west of England, the Telegraph reports. "In the past, it would have been unthinkable for an alternative lender, let alone a new peer-to-peer lender, to collaborate with a bank. However, it is clear that there's a genuine desire emerging for banks to support SMEs more by introducing alternative lending industry options," said Andrew Holgate, managing director of Assetz. RBS follows in the fo...