Zopa Blog

How Zopa is different to other peer-to-peer platforms

During these uncertain times, we have seen lots of different peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms taking different approaches to mitigate the disruption caused. The variance in approach, at its core, is due…

Posted on 03 April 2020
by Zopian blogger

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Coronavirus and your investment

Coronavirus and your investment

For our latest updates, log into your Zopa account. The volatility seen across the stock market recently is not something we expect to see replicated to the same extent in…

Posted on 18 March 2020
by Zopian blogger

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Updated: Coronavirus and your loan

Loans Your money

Updated: Coronavirus and your loan

This blog was updated on 27th March to reflect the latest processes we've put in place to help borrowers affected by Coronavirus. We’re living through troubling and uncertain times, and…

Posted on 18 March 2020
by Zopian blogger

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My Work Life: Ed

Inside Zopa Zopian life

My Work Life: Ed

We spoke to Product Manager Ed Stuart-Bourne, on his career moves so far and his work at Zopa. I’ve always been into tech Aged 10, I built my own website…

Posted on 10 March 2020
by Zopian blogger

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My Work Life: George

Inside Zopa Zopian life

My Work Life: George

People Operations Manager George, on his experience at Zopa and his career moves so far. I studied economics with a focus on microeconomics and game theory The latter points out…

Posted on 11 February 2020
by Zopian blogger

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Safeguard two years on

It’s been just over two years since we retired products with Safeguard coverage. But some investors still have Safeguard loans in their portfolio and even investors who joined Zopa since…

Posted on 15 January 2020
by Zopian blogger

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What the new peer-to-peer regulations mean for you

In June 2019, the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) released its final review of peer-to-peer (P2P) platforms and introduced a number of new rules. Today, December 9th 2019, the new regulations have come into…

Posted on 09 December 2019
by Zopian blogger

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What’s your festive finance spirit animal 🦌 🧝 ☃️ 🐧

What’s your festive finance spirit animal 🦌 🧝 ☃️ 🐧

Are you a Splash-the-cash Snowman or a Rein-it-in Reindeer? Take our quick quiz to find out your festive finance spirit animal.

Posted on 09 December 2019
by Zopian blogger

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We’re a nation of festive financiers

We’re a nation of festive financiers

Forget Jingle bells, cash tills are going to be ringing up and down the country this festive season, as Brits have been saving to spend £35 billion this Christmas, according…

Posted on 09 December 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Investments Our products

Translating the new peer-to-peer rules

As part of the new Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulations on the peer-to-peer (P2P) industry which come into effect on 9 December, we’ll need you to confirm your level of experience with P2P on a yearly basis. Based on this information, you’ll then…

Posted on 25 November 2019
by Zopian blogger

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The Borrowing Power 100 Day Challenge – Terms & Conditions

Take the Zopa 100 days challenge and see if you could improve your Borrowing Power rating. We’ve joined forces with personal finance whizz @mamafurfur (Jen Kempson) and launched our 100…

Posted on 22 November 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Gender diversity at Zopa

A balanced and diverse workforce is important to Zopa. We want to create a fairer and more inclusive working environment in which everyone can be themselves. Gender diversity is one…

Posted on 30 September 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Protecting yourself from fraud

Protecting yourself from fraud

Online fraud is on the rise and the people behind the scams are getting smarter -- we have even heard from customers about fraudsters impersonating Zopa. We’re always working to…

Posted on 18 September 2019
by Zopian blogger

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My work life: Sabah

Inside Zopa Zopian life

My work life: Sabah

Legal Counsel, Sabah, on her experience at Zopa and her career moves so far I loved my time studying law Every parent in India wants a doctor or a lawyer…

Posted on 16 September 2019
by Zopian blogger

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My work life: Yemi

Inside Zopa Zopian life

My work life: Yemi

Head of Customer Services, Yemi, on her experience at Zopa and her career moves so far When I was younger, I wanted to be… A drama teacher. For me, working…

Posted on 08 August 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa Zopian life

My work life: Christian

Core Services Tribe Lead, Christian, on his experience at Zopa and his career moves so far. When I was younger, I wanted to be… When I was really little, taller.…

Posted on 10 July 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Picking the right car finance option for you

Loans Your money

Picking the right car finance option for you

There are lots of decisions you need to make when buying a new car: for example, what make and model, petrol or hybrid, and whether to opt for new or…

Posted on 11 June 2019
by Zopian blogger

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My work life: Slavo

Inside Zopa Zopian life

My work life: Slavo

Head of System Architecture and Integration, Slavo Ingilizov, on his experience at Zopa and his career moves so far. When I was younger, I wanted to be… I think I…

Posted on 23 April 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Are you living the (Feel)Good life? Find out in our latest quiz

FeelGood Money Your money Zopa news

Are you living the (Feel)Good life? Find out in our latest quiz

Some people like to live life right on the edge, while others prefer to be a bit more cautious. At Zopa, we love the place slap-bang in the middle. Finding…

Posted on 11 March 2019
by Zopian blogger

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My work life: Milda

Inside Zopa Zopian life

My work life: Milda

QA Engineer Milda on what she loves about tech and why she’d encourage other women to work in the industry. I realised I wanted to work in tech when… I had…

Posted on 08 March 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Open Banking a year (or so) on

Future of finance Inside Zopa Our products Tech Your money Zopa explains

Open Banking a year (or so) on

There’s a problem in Britain’s banking market. Fintech businesses and the new ‘challenger banks’ hold many of the ideas, but the long-established major banks hold the power. Because of this,…

Posted on 07 March 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Worried about your ISA returns? Look to the Middle

Investments Our products Zopa explains

Worried about your ISA returns? Look to the Middle

Wondering what connects your ISA and a cheese toastie? Read on to find out more. In 2018 investors were reminded of the reality of risk versus reward in a big way. After years of impressive gains,…

Posted on 25 January 2019
by Zopian blogger

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Say hello to the FeelGood Money™ company

Today, over half of British adults don’t think their main bank has their best interests at heart. The banking industry is well overdue a change, and we want to be…

Posted on 04 December 2018
by Zopian blogger

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Bank notes reimagined

Our first mission as the FeelGood Money™ company is to inject a little bit of feel good into bank notes. Check out our latest ad that featured in The Metro on…

Posted on 04 December 2018
by Zopian blogger

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Your Zopa Spirit Animal

Find out your Zopa Financial Spirit Animal

Posted on 27 November 2018
by Zopian blogger

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Taking control of your career: investing time in you

Inside Zopa Zopian life

Taking control of your career: investing time in you

Underwriter turned engineer, Demi, talks about his career change and the role Zopa played in helping to make it happen. I moved to a new role recently and it’s very…

Posted on 16 October 2018
by Zopian blogger

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Why we’ve signed the Women in Finance Charter

Why we’ve signed the Women in Finance Charter

Diversity and inclusion are at the heart of Zopian culture and we believe that it helps us generate different and interesting ideas. Diversity helps us to look at the world…

Posted on 15 October 2018
by Zopian blogger

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Future of finance Inside Zopa Zopian life

Three ways Zopa is staying disruptive

When Zopa was launched, our founders were focused on a simple customer problem: those who needed money were being charged high rates to borrow whilst those looking to invest were…

Posted on 31 March 2017
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa Tech Zopian life

Zopa hosts Women Who Code event

One of the best ways to realise what you don’t know about code is to try to teach it to someone else. Why can’t you wrap the entire body element…

Posted on 23 February 2017
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa Tech Zopian life

Paths to programming – meet Kate and Tom

Our people come from many different backgrounds. Here at Zopa we recognize diversity of experience and background as a positive for our teams, and for the strength of the business.…

Posted on 25 January 2017
by Zopian blogger

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Managing your money Your money

StepChange’s Debt Awareness Week and why it’s important

Anyone can fall into financial hardship. Things like redundancy, illness, bereavement and relationship breakdown can be unexpected and, as well as having an enormous emotional impact, can also negatively affect…

Posted on 18 January 2016
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa News

Zopa lends £52m in July – A NEW UK RECORD

Last Friday was one to celebrate here at Zopa Towers, not just because it was the start of the weekend but because we achieved a major milestone for the company…

Posted on 03 August 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Loans Our products

Zopa’s arrears management process explained

Treating customers fairly and delivering value to them is the central idea behind Zopa. This means giving consistent returns to the lenders while offering competitive rates to our borrowers. Our…

Posted on 12 June 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa News

Zopa announces partnership with Metro Bank

We have today announced that Zopa is partnering with Metro Bank to allow the bank to lend its funds on our platform, a first of its kind in the UK.…

Posted on 20 May 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Your money Your stories

Zopa meets Create My Case owner Daniel – Video

At Zopa we don't just help out everyday consumers with personal loans we also help some of the 3.5 million sole traders in the UK to get a better deal…

Posted on 13 April 2015
by Zopian blogger

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News Zopian life

Zopa 10 year party video

We like to reward our customers a bit differently as each year we invite them to a customer party to meet the Zopa team and to say thank you. This…

Posted on 26 March 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa News

Video – 2005 A Zopa Odyssey

A lot has changed in 10 years. We look back at the past decade including some key cultural milestones as well as the evolution in finance that Zopa kick started…

Posted on 16 March 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Your money Your stories

Lends Reunited video

In 2005 our borrowing customer Dave took out a loan to buy a car. At the same time our lending customer Henry lent money to get a better return by…

Posted on 11 March 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa News

Happy 10th birthday Zopa – A decade of P2P lending

This week is a pretty important milestone here at Zopa as we celebrate 10 years of lending and it is even more special because we happened to invent it. Meaning,…

Posted on 10 March 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa News

Infographic – 10 years of P2P lending in numbers

As part of our 10th birthday here at Zopa, we wanted to take all our important data and share it with in a lovely graphic. This 10 years of P2P…

Posted on 10 March 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Investments Our products

Updates to the weekly lender and dashboard

Over the last few weeks we've been making further enhancements to the weekly lender and My Zopa dashboard. Both now show the current rate your loan book is earning. This…

Posted on 27 February 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Inside Zopa News

Zopa does the double – Moneyfacts Awards 2015

Forget your Golden Globes, BAFTAs or Oscars. It’s all about the Moneyfacts Awards here at Zopa and today has started on a rather celebratory note after we won two awards…

Posted on 23 January 2015
by Zopian blogger

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Lending update – Rate Promise

The current Rate Promise ended on the 5th January and we will not be introducing a new one at this time. This means the annualised headline rates advertised will be…

Posted on 06 January 2015
by Zopian blogger

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My Zopa Lending

This latest release to My Zopa aims to make it easier to understand how lending works so you can make more informed decisions based on how much money is queued,…

Posted on 17 December 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa goes with the Flow

We are very happy to announce that Zopa has signed a commercial agreement to provide finance to Flow customers on its innovative, money saving and low carbon boiler. Flow has…

Posted on 01 December 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Lending Queue FAQ

We value transparency regarding your lending here at Zopa and that is why we are working to provide better visibility to see where your money is in the lending queue.…

Posted on 24 November 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa named Best P2P lender by MoneyWeek

We are very proud to announce that Zopa has been voted Best P2P lender in the MoneyWeek Readers’ Choice Awards 2014. This is a very special award to win as…

Posted on 11 November 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Alternative finance market set to double in 2015 – Nesta report

A new report. from Nesta and the University of Cambridge highlights how the UK alternative finance sector has more than doubled in the last year and is set to grow…

Posted on 10 November 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Home Improvement Index – DIY ROI

Us Brits love our homes, we consider them to be our castles and the main asset we own. We also love the odd bit of DIY, although most of us…

Posted on 04 November 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Updates to My Zopa

Over the coming weeks we’ll be making some changes to the logged in account pages for lenders, called My Zopa. The first of these changes is to reorganise the information…

Posted on 27 October 2014
by Zopian blogger

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P2P ISA update – government consultation

The government has today confirmed plans to include peer-to-peer lending in ISAs following an initial announcement in this year's Budget. The consultation paper published today by the Treasury explores how…

Posted on 17 October 2014
by Zopian blogger

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The cost of raising an adult – Infographic

With the costs of bringing up a child spiralling in the UK, British parents could be forgiven for hoping that their offspring will be off their hands (and wallets) by…

Posted on 16 October 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Appoints Chief Operating Officer

We are very happy to announce that we have appointed Jaidev Janardana who will become the company’s Chief Operating Officer in a strategic hire for Zopa, strengthening our management team…

Posted on 02 October 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Second Hand Cars – Top 5 Best Buys

With the new vehicle registration number plates out, many people may be considering buying a new car. However, buying a new car can mean paying out a lot of money…

Posted on 30 September 2014
by Zopian blogger

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More recognition for Zopa

We are delighted to share two exciting pieces of news around Zopa as a business. As a pioneer of peer-to-peer lending it is our mission to deliver great value for…

Posted on 17 September 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Alternative Transfer List

Around this time every year, football fans up and down the country urge managers and chairmen to put their hands in their pockets and invest additional transfer funds in new…

Posted on 28 August 2014
by Zopian blogger

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The power of compound interest

Anyone who is serious about their finances and looking to maximise their returns should get clued up about compound interest. Although compound interest is a relatively simple concept, it can…

Posted on 20 August 2014
by Zopian blogger

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The Power of the Crowd, and the Death of the Middleman

As you’re already on the Zopa website, I’m guessing you already know how Zopa works. And there’s a good chance you think Zopa offers a great service. I certainly…

Posted on 11 August 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Matching Engine and Rapid Returns updates

On the 11th June I announced changes to the way loans are matched to lender funds. The changes made so far mean that lender funds on offer can regularly be…

Posted on 01 August 2014
by Zopian blogger

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What would a Bank of England interest rate increase mean for lenders?

The Governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, recently suggested during his Mansion House speech that an interest raise rise “could happen sooner than markets currently expect”, leading many…

Posted on 22 July 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Summer Party

Recently we celebrated our ninth birthday with over 350 Zopa customers at our annual summer party. We saw a wide range of both lenders and borrowers join our team…

Posted on 18 July 2014
by Zopian blogger

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What’s your debt age?

Did you know that the average Briton has £4.5k of credit card debts? These debts can take up to 17 years to pay off, but most of us aren’t aware…

Posted on 08 July 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Five need to know things about peer-to-peer lending

You may have only just heard about peer-to-peer lending (P2P) but it is older than you think as we (Zopa) invented the concept back in 2004, and have been lending…

Posted on 27 June 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Institutional lending update

As you may have seen in the news recently as covered by the likes of the FT. Zopa along with other UK peer-to-peer lending (P2P) companies, have agreed to make…

Posted on 13 June 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa does the Moneywise awards double

Brazil weren’t the only triumphant team yesterday evening as Zopa stormed the MoneyWise Customer Service Awards 2014 with a double win. Scooping the award for Most Trusted Loan Provider for…

Posted on 13 June 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa approves 100k loans

We reached an important milestone at Zopa as we are proud to announce that Zopa lenders have now funded over 100,000 individual loans for UK borrowers. This means that our…

Posted on 12 June 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Matching engine update

Monitoring the way loans are matched is a daily priority here at Zopa and over the past few months we have analysed a large amount of data to look at…

Posted on 11 June 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s 0% balance transfer trap stunt

This week saw Zopa hit the streets of London armed with a larger than life credit card trap to highlight the pitfalls that some consumers get into with 0% balance…

Posted on 06 June 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Moneyfesto

As part of our BacktoBlack campaign on 0% balance transfer traps and credit card debt, we have created the Zopa Moneyfesto highlighting the key issues and changes we would like to…

Posted on 16 May 2014
by Zopian blogger

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BacktoBlack – Are UK credit cardholders getting a good deal?

Zopa has today revealed the real cost of 0% balance transfers that affect millions of credit card holders in the UK. Results from our #BacktoBlack report compiled by personal finance…

Posted on 12 May 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Safeguard a year on

Doesn’t time fly? Well it’s been a whole year since Zopa launched Safeguard - bringing a safer, simpler and easier way to help grow your savings. To mark this mini-milestone…

Posted on 06 May 2014
by Zopian blogger

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What regulation of peer-to-peer lending means to you!

As of April 2014 Zopa is now regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Zopa has been lobbying for regulation for a number of years and was a founding member…

Posted on 11 April 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Heartbleed vulnerability response

On Monday a security patch was released to the OpenSSL project to fix a serious security vulnerability. The bug, nicknamed Heartbleed, allows anyone to read information from the memory of…

Posted on 10 April 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa lends record level as it reaches 500 million

It is official. Zopa has now lent over half a billion pounds to UK borrowers since launching in 2005 making peer-to-peer lending a mainstream activity. Reaching £500m means we have…

Posted on 31 March 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Peer-to-peer lending, a giant leap forward

It’s been a super busy last week of March for Zopa and peer-to-peer lending. We’ve had record levels of borrowers coming to Zopa alongside getting ready for the FCA regulation…

Posted on 28 March 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Guess and win £500

*THIS COMPETITION IS NOW CLOSED. Thanks for participating, winners will be notified shortly. As we get close to reaching the huge £500m lent milestone for Zopa, we want to celebrate…

Posted on 24 March 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Budget 2014 recap

The Budget has been and gone and after Mr Osborne’s speech comes news of change to everything from business rates, consumer savings and even bingo. With media access kept to…

Posted on 21 March 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Peer-to-peer secures ISA status

Fantastic news for investors today as peer-to-peer lending will soon be included in ISAs as announced by George Osborne in the Budget today. The peer-to-peer ISA is an extremely exciting…

Posted on 19 March 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Maintenance

We will be making some technical improvements to the Zopa website today between 13:00- 14:00. As a result, access to the secure sections of the site (My Zopa) will be…

Posted on 13 March 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa secures additional funding to spread financial happiness to the UK’s savers and borrowers

We are proud to announce that Zopa has raised £15 million of new investment into the business from Arrowgrass Capital Partners, (covered in yesterday’s Financial Times and Evening Standard). This…

Posted on 31 January 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa named as Personal Loan Provider of the Year

Forget your Golden Globes, BAFTAs or Oscars. It’s all about the Moneyfacts Awards here at Zopa and today has started on a rather celebratory note after we won two awards…

Posted on 24 January 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa features on ITV1 Martin Lewis Money Show

We would like to welcome the hundreds of new members to Zopa who have joined us after seeing the Martin Lewis Money Show last Friday on ITV1. If you need…

Posted on 24 January 2014
by Zopian blogger

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2013 Zopa Safeguard Review

Maintaining the best credit performance on personal loans is rather like the hare and the tortoise – more haste, less speed. That may sound odd coming from a company that…

Posted on 07 January 2014
by Zopian blogger

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Christmas Jumper Day 2013

The last few years have seen a steady incline in traditionally awful and festive knitwear being worn by friends, family and colleagues. It seems that us Brits have now fully…

Posted on 13 December 2013
by Zopian blogger

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The end of Funding for Lending? Not just yet

A lot has been written and debated about the affect the Government’s Funding for Lending Scheme has had on interest rates since being introduced in July 2012. It has been…

Posted on 03 December 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Faster and fairer lending

We are always working to make lending the best experience possible here at Zopa. Since introducing Safeguard and evolving the way savers lend at Zopa, our goal has been to…

Posted on 13 November 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Introducing our £20k loans

Our borrowing limit has now increased to £20,000 for loans towards the bigger things in life. At Zopa, our mission is to reward people who are sensible with money. We…

Posted on 07 November 2013
by Zopian blogger

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October – Our biggest month ever

Is it just us or did October fly by? As always there has been a lot going on here at Zopa, including company accolades, peer to peer milestones, record…

Posted on 01 November 2013
by Zopian blogger

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The A market gets a shake up

Just a quick update here to let you all know we have adjusted our markets slightly for borrowers with very good credit ratings. We have split our markets to create…

Posted on 23 October 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa breaks £400m milestone

It is official. We have now lent over £400 MILLION to UK borrowers since we launched in 2005 and are driving the UK's peer to peer industry into the mainstream.…

Posted on 22 October 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa is named as a FutureFifty business

We are a modest bunch here at Zopa, so shouting about our achievements is something we only do when they merit the megaphone treatment of our blog and social channels.…

Posted on 17 October 2013
by Zopian blogger

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The balancing act of inflation and interest

Since the Bank of England (BoE) Governor, Mark Carney announced that interest rates wouldn’t rise until there was a drop in the unemployment rate, never has the UK been so…

Posted on 07 October 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Introducing the Zopa Savings calculator

So as well as knowing you are getting a great interest rate on Zopa it's also important to know the amount in pounds you can expect for being a regular…

Posted on 02 October 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Safeguard fund reaches £1 million

It has been just over four months since we launched the Zopa Safeguard and already the fund has grown to over £1 million. We have seen this number grow from…

Posted on 10 September 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Transferring money in just got much faster

Helping our savers lend money more quickly means they earn more interest. So we have taken additional steps to help you reduce the time it takes to get funds into…

Posted on 06 September 2013
by Zopian blogger

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August update from Zopa

Not only has it been one of the warmest and sunniest Augusts we can remember but it has also been one of the busiest months here at Zopa. We have…

Posted on 04 September 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa FC’s best loans and signings

This is a quick and fun post for any of our football fans out there. As we have a few armchair pundits in the office here at Zopa and to…

Posted on 04 September 2013
by Zopian blogger

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We think you’re due a mobile upgrade

Our phones and tablets are becoming more and more vital to our daily lives. As more and more of you are logging on to Zopa via your smartphones and tablets,…

Posted on 28 August 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Member story rewards Terms and Conditions

You agree to be bound by the terms and conditions below by submitting your member story for the chance of receiving £40 John Lewis gift vouchers as a member reward.…

Posted on 16 August 2013
by Zopian blogger

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How do your savings compare?

This summer has seen the resurgence of Brits as winners when it comes to sport, but how good are we when it comes to winning in the old savings game…

Posted on 08 August 2013
by Zopian blogger

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July – The £20 million month

Last month we mentioned that we had broken our record for total amount lent in a day, which stood at £838k. Well, since then we have beaten our own records…

Posted on 01 August 2013
by Zopian blogger

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The true cost of Britain’s negative savings

If you are reading this, then you are in the right place to avoid becoming a negative saver. However, there are millions of people in the UK that are unaware…

Posted on 29 July 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Lending money more quickly

We’ve received feedback from savers that they would like to lend their money faster. As Zopa aims to ensure that savers’ money is always working as hard as it can…

Posted on 11 July 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Coming soon – Zopa business loans

Zopa has helped savers to lend to borrowers looking for personal loans for over 8 years, providing better returns to savers and lower rate loans to borrowers. When surveyed over…

Posted on 05 July 2013
by Zopian blogger

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What happened in June?

We don’t sit still here at Zopa for too long, so here is quick update of what happened during June. Breaking records The big news to share from June is…

Posted on 01 July 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Saver Survey – £100 Gift Voucher Terms & Conditions

You agree to be bound by the terms and conditions by entering the Zopa £100 John Lewis gift voucher draw (“the Competition”). The Promoter of the Competition is Zopa UK…

Posted on 27 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Saver Survey – £100 Gift Voucher Terms & Conditions

You agree to be bound by the terms and conditions by entering the Zopa £100 John Lewis gift voucher draw (“the Competition”). The Promoter of the Competition is Zopa UK…

Posted on 27 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Safeguard and Rapid Return Loans

Zopa Safeguard Zopa launched the Safeguard at the end of April and since then almost 20,000 savers have chosen to lend through it, funding more money than ever before. As…

Posted on 24 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Keeping up with the Joneses

We all love our homes and it’s no surprise that home improvements are the third most popular reason for why our borrowers take out a loan from Zopa. Since we…

Posted on 21 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa named Most Trusted Loans Provider 2013 by Moneywise

Firstly, THANK YOU to everyone who voted for Zopa to win Most Trusted Loans Provider 2013 at the Moneywise Customer Service Awards 2013 last night. This is the fourth time…

Posted on 14 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Latest news from Zopa towers

The last six weeks have been some of the most exciting since we launched Zopa eight years ago. The whole team has been working to deliver improvements to Zopa…

Posted on 13 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Keep your money working

At the end of April this year Zopa introduced Safeguard lending to help you: Earn better returns on your savings Lend safely with the protection of the Zopa Safeguard Get…

Posted on 12 June 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Wedding season has begun

With wedding season officially under way, it can only mean one thing for many couples that are planning their special day, STRESS. With so much to plan and pay…

Posted on 24 May 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Launches Loans Under 5% APR

We are proud to announce that we are helping sensible borrowers get a good deal by cutting our loan rates to 4.9% Rep. APR for loans between £7,500 and £10,000…

Posted on 17 May 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Where does £300m go?

After reaching over £300m lent to UK borrowers, we thought breaking down that figure would be a helpful way to show how the loans have been used and where Zopa…

Posted on 14 May 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Survey – £100 Gift Vouchers Terms & Conditions

You agree to be bound by the terms and conditions by entering the Zopa £100 John Lewis gift vouchers draw (“the Competition”). The Promoter of the Competition is Zopa UK…

Posted on 14 May 2013
by Zopian blogger

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The £300,000,000 question?

It’s not every day that we hit a milestone as a company and community, but we thought we would stop to take a short break to celebrate hitting £300 million…

Posted on 01 May 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Introducing: the Zopa Safeguard offer

Did you know Zopa savers have almost lent £300 million to sensible borrowers since we started? But even with a 200% increase in savers joining us this year, we think…

Posted on 30 April 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Moneywise shortlists Zopa in 2013 Customer Service Awards

“Good customer service is like gold dust.” We couldn’t agree more with Moneywise on that statement. You may have seen our requests over the past few months about voting for…

Posted on 29 April 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Lender Funding Dates

With Easter approaching, it’s a great time to top up your Zopa account and continue to grow your savings through lending to the UK’s most trusted borrowers. The Zopa offices…

Posted on 25 March 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Vote for Zopa!

Are you happy with the service you’ve received through Zopa? Moneywise are currently running a national survey which gives consumers the chance to vote for their favourite financial products. Zopa…

Posted on 24 January 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Lending Account Update

We’re making improvements to the lending offer page to help savers choose their rates more easily. Amber circles will now show in non-A markets when both the participation is low…

Posted on 17 January 2013
by Zopian blogger

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Lending to small businesses

We are pleased to announce that we will be taking part in the Government’s Business Finance Partnership scheme to help small businesses. As part of this scheme, the Government will…

Posted on 12 December 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Lender funding dates

With Easter approaching, it’s a great time to top up your Zopa account and continue to grow your savings through lending to the UK’s most trusted borrowers. The Zopa offices…

Posted on 05 December 2012
by Zopian blogger

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The lending offer page is having a makeover

We are making some changes to the lending offer page so Zopa savers can more easily choose and monitor their rates. The usability of the lending rate dropdown is improved…

Posted on 19 October 2012
by Zopian blogger

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More than one way to save for retirement

Statistics out recently confirmed that fewer people in Britain are saving in a pension than ever before. In fact, only 46% of UK adults are saving enough to fund even…

Posted on 25 September 2012
by Zopian blogger

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The ZOPA Part 4 – heads & tails

Zopa operates an open market place where borrowers look for low cost loans and lenders seek high returns. As with any price discovery process there will be some volatility in…

Posted on 23 August 2012
by Zopian blogger

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The ZOPA Part 3 – your place in the queue

This post is aimed at those lenders who are interested in the technical details behind matching borrowers with lenders. The change to the matching mechanism discussed here is a subtle…

Posted on 21 August 2012
by Zopian blogger

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The ZOPA Part 2 – an accurate and stable lending forecast

The ZOPA is a range of rates over which you can expect to lend out money over the next 7 days. The bottom of the ZOPA is where you will…

Posted on 20 August 2012
by Zopian blogger

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The ZOPA Part 1 – the ZOPA is getting better.

As a lender at Zopa you will be pleased to know that over the next few weeks we will be improving the information available to you when deciding what interest…

Posted on 17 August 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Beth’s Blog – Part 4

We’ve had a great few weeks at Zopa with lots of people coming to us for loans and thanks to a few high profile spots in the press a lot…

Posted on 24 July 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Beth’s Blog – Part 3

Another bustling few weeks down at the Zopa offices! In the news, we got a lovely spot in The Herald thanks to our borrower in Glasgow Andrew Foreman, who used…

Posted on 10 July 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Beth’s Blog – Part 2

What a week it has been at the Zopa offices! We’ve had applications coming out of our ears after our BBC plug meaning we’re approving more loans than we ever…

Posted on 22 June 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Beth’s Blog – Part 1

Blog post 01/06/2012 A new addition to our Zopa blog this month, member services exec Beth will be giving you an insider’s look into our company, bringing you news, updates…

Posted on 15 June 2012
by Zopian blogger

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DannySpud’s Story

Lender “Dannyspud” is at university and has chosen to shun boozey indulgence and instead invest whatever he has left from his student loan into Zopa. He got in touch to…

Posted on 14 June 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Renaming Auto Lend to Auto Top Up

We’ve decided to rename one of our popular lending features: Auto Lend will be Auto Top Up from now on. For those of you who aren’t aware of what this…

Posted on 23 April 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s time has come

Last month, a very senior figure at the Bank of England - Andrew Haldane - made an important speech in New York and put a number of very lively cats…

Posted on 16 April 2012
by Zopian blogger

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Personal loans: it’s all about the rate isn’t it?

Personal loans: it’s all about the rate isn’t it? When looking for the best deal on a loan, most of us will - sensibly enough - look for the lowest…

Posted on 24 February 2012
by Zopian blogger

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MORI Research On Bank Spreads

So how much is your bank charging you? A simple enough question, but even the lady running Lloyd’s retail banking in the UK couldn’t tell the Treasury Select Committee how…

Posted on 16 September 2011
by Zopian blogger

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NEED:LESS… 1 day to go!

Starting from this Friday (09.09.11) the Zopa team will be striving to need less in order to give more. We've made a commitment to each live on a budget of…

Posted on 07 September 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Lending Offer Screen: Understanding the data

Creating a Lending Offer is one of the key actions a Lender at Zopa can take. To make the experience simpler for new Lenders and at the same time give…

Posted on 31 August 2011
by Zopian blogger

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New Lending Offer Screen

Example market data .csv file: MarketQuoteReport.csv Basic view: Expanded view:

Posted on 25 August 2011
by Zopian blogger

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We proudly present the P2P Finance Association

We're excited to tell you that this Monday, 15th August 2011, Zopa and two of our competitors – Funding Circle and RateSetter – set up a new UK trade body…

Posted on 17 August 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Most trusted, second year running!

Yesterday was a big night for the nation's financial services industry - the Moneywise Customer Services Awards 2011 were staged at the glamorous Northumberland (photographic evidence on our Facebook page).…

Posted on 24 June 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Join the Zopa team

We're on the hunt for a superb business analyst and a webdesign powerhouse to join the Zopa team. The two job ads can be found here, and we'd love it…

Posted on 19 May 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Friday the 13th makes for great conversation

You might have heard it through the grapevine: This Friday, 13th May, Zopa will hold a one-hour live chat. Whether you're new to Zopa and just dipping your toe or…

Posted on 10 May 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Banking reform?

On the morning that the Vickers banking commission “Interim” report was released, I thought I would set out a few personal thoughts. You won’t address the banks’ poor delivery and…

Posted on 11 April 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Happy Birthday (x2)!

After strengthening with pizza (photographic evidence to the right), the Zopa team headed for The Waterpoet in Shoreditch for our 6th birthday party. There, we were delighted to see plenty…

Posted on 14 March 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s first foray in TV advertising

Last month we were really rather chuffed to get our first ever TV commercial up and running on your tellyboxes and it’s been spreading the word about Zopa very nicely.…

Posted on 08 February 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Reloaded: Moneywise Customer Service Awards 2011

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you'll have seen our entry from June 2010 on winning not just one, but two Moneywise Customer Service Awards. That was all thanks…

Posted on 19 January 2011
by Zopian blogger

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Christmas Caption Competition

There was much wearing of silly hats and those odd shoes that no one likes at our recent Christmas shindig when we all went for a spot of bowling. We…

Posted on 22 December 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Larger than Liverpool

Over the past few years there have been a few great member landmarks here at Zopa, for example: Back in October 2006 we were officially "bigger than Basildon" when we…

Posted on 02 December 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Instant access to your money with Rapid Return

Last week was an exciting week for everyone at Zopa as well as for our lenders, when we announced the launch of a new feature called ‘Rapid Return’. It’ll allow lenders…

Posted on 15 November 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Join team Zopa for Movember

Next month we're expecting things to get a little hairy here in the office as some of the Zopa team (hopefully only those of the male persuasion) set about cultivating…

Posted on 27 October 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Microfinance, Crowdfunding or Peer-to-peer lending?

We welcome our friend and guest blogger Rob Garcia, Director of product Strategy (and social media guru) at Lending Club in the US. We get asked the question a lot…

Posted on 25 October 2010
by Zopian blogger

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I’m squishy in the packet but harden in the air. What am I?

I am Sugru and the folk that work there are jolly nice! They spotted our mention of them in our blog back in May and sent us a super pack…

Posted on 11 October 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Collaborative Consumption

We're really rather pleased to have been given a big mention in a new book that's just been launched, entitled "What's Mine is Yours: The Rise of Collaborative Consumption". Written…

Posted on 17 September 2010
by Zopian blogger

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£100million Loans!

I have only been working for Zopa since June 2010 but I am always amazed by the speed of growth here and the amazing member community, and our next exciting…

Posted on 14 September 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Farewell fellow Co-worker

Today is a sad day here at Zopa HQ as Jenny our Press & Direct Marketing Manager is moving on to bigger adventures! Many of you may have had a…

Posted on 24 August 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Need for Regulation

I've written about regulation before, but only in the context of the US and how regulation can be potentially unhelpful in its approach to innovation. I think the subject needs revisiting,…

Posted on 26 July 2010
by Zopian blogger

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July at Zopa

There’s been lots of excitement at Zopa towers this month so far, so we felt it was only right to share... As our Facebook followers will know, the month started…

Posted on 12 July 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Most trusted!

Giles, Briony and I had a lovely evening last night at the Moneywise Customer Service Awards in London Town, not only because the lamb was very tasy (as was the…

Posted on 18 June 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Make your own Zopa Facebook campagin.

A short while ago we had a request from one of our members, asking if we could produce an image that meets Facebook's guidelines since all our existing images on…

Posted on 16 June 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Some competition

I’ve often been asked whether we’re keen to see some competition for Zopa in the UK peer-to-peer lending market and I’ve always said that we’d welcome it as it would…

Posted on 20 May 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Bigger than Bristol!

It’s not long ago that we were ordering mugs and badges proclaiming that we were bigger than Basildon when Zopa had 100,000 members. Last year we reached 300,000 and were…

Posted on 13 May 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Are you WIRED? We are!

The very latest edition of WIRED magazine is out and peer-to-peer lending is only on the front cover! Turn to page 100 and you'll find a great article featuring those…

Posted on 06 May 2010
by Zopian blogger

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The results are in!

Forget the rest of the opinion polls doing the rounds - Zopa conducted our very own high tech and undoubtedly statistically accurate survey last week to find out who our…

Posted on 06 May 2010
by Zopian blogger

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We’re on the shortlist!

Thanks v much to those of you who took the time to complete a survey for the Moneywise Customer Service Awards and more importantly, thanks for mentioning Zopa! We're chuffed…

Posted on 04 May 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Want to work for Zopa?

We're currently recruiting a Junior Web Developer to join our team - is that you or someone you know? Have a look at the job description here, and if you…

Posted on 27 April 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa on The One Show!

We were on The One Show last Friday, have a look:

Posted on 27 April 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Telling a Friend

Check out our Facebook discussion where we're asking you for your ideas and insights into what we could do to make it easier and generally more interesting for you to…

Posted on 31 March 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Sneak Peek

Reading the blog of Newsnight's economics editor, Paul Mason, you might get the slightest hint that we're going to be included in his latest feature. It actually runs over two…

Posted on 29 March 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Alternatives to banking, trust and risk

A very interesting set of observations here on alternatives to banking, how easy they are to get going and a particularly good question in the Spectator article that Giles refers…

Posted on 16 March 2010
by Zopian blogger

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It’s our birthday!

It seems like hardly any time ago at all that we were blogging about being four, but it' that time of year again and we've hit half a decade! If…

Posted on 10 March 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Boldness in Business Awards

Had a very grown up evening last night at the FT ArcelorMittal 'Boldness in Business' awards at the Tate Modern. We were up for the 'Most Promising Newcomer' award for…

Posted on 26 February 2010
by Zopian blogger

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We’re in the medals!

So a few days since the last update where it was all looking a bit gloomy on the GB medals front - no longer! Ok, so we may only have…

Posted on 25 February 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Winter Olympics: Day 6

Day 6 of the Olympics and still not a sniff of a medal for Team GB – well it’s the taking part that matters, surely? The men’s curling team put…

Posted on 18 February 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Winter Olympic watch!

The Winter Olympics opened at the weekend with a sombre tone, following the tragic death of Georgian luge contender Nodar Kumaritashvili. However, the show must go on and the games…

Posted on 16 February 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Winter Olympics Watch

This Saturday, the 2010 Winter Olympic Games will begin in Vancouver. We’ll be behind Team GB all the way, with all the latest news and our special Zopa medal tally,…

Posted on 11 February 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Record January

In January, we disbursed £3.81 million to our borrowers, making it our biggest month ever. We're pretty chuffed with this, so thanks to all our members for making it possible.…

Posted on 04 February 2010
by Zopian blogger

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More P2P debate

A good review and discussion of P2P lending and the performance of various of the players in the global market here. Please do add your thoughts to Giles' comments on…

Posted on 21 January 2010
by Zopian blogger

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Ex-Zopa US CTO blogs

We spotted an interesting post here from Rajesh who was CTO of Zopa in the US and is an excellent technologist with a great understanding of the lending business.

Posted on 20 January 2010
by Zopian blogger

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2010 Trends

Our friends at P2P-Banking.com have posted an interesting review of P2P lending here and I thought I would give a personal opinion on the questions they ask: 1. Will there…

Posted on 15 January 2010
by Zopian blogger

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What a year

Well, 2009 has certainly been a great year for Zopa and our members; collectively you've lent and borrowed more than £32m over the last 12 months - compare that to…

Posted on 29 December 2009
by Zopian blogger

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We’ve been nominated for an award!

Yep, we got an early Christmas present this week when we found out that we’d been nominated for the Newcomer Award at the Boldness in Business Awards, which is run…

Posted on 18 December 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Jargon Buster – Early Repayment Fees

However good the APR looks on a loan, it's always worth checking what happens if you want to pay back your loan early. There's no point being saddled with debt…

Posted on 03 December 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Teach the banks a lesson: pull your money out

Instead of moaning about the banks, the bonuses and the profit margins, why not do something about it? Tom Hodgkinson, editor of Idler magazine, wrote this article in The Ecologist…

Posted on 03 December 2009
by Zopian blogger

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29 Shopping days left until Christmas!

November has already flown by and the countdown to Christmas is imminent. With less than month to go it seems the perfect time to discuss how we’ll all be getting…

Posted on 26 November 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Jargon Buster – Credit Reference Agency

A Credit Reference Agency is an organisation that is licensed under the Consumer Credit Act to hold information about individuals that is available to lenders when an application for credit…

Posted on 28 October 2009
by Zopian blogger

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United Prosperity

Hot on the heels of websites such as Kiva, summer 2009 saw the launch of United Prosperity, where your donations can help people in the poorest parts of the world…

Posted on 23 October 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Add your voice to our tax campaign

You'll see that something of a lively debate is taking place on this BBC blog. Earlier today I responded to earlier comments on the thread that mentioned Zopa, to say…

Posted on 21 October 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Fans in Westminster

With the ongoing fall-out from MP’s expenses, these days it seems being mates with George Bush might be more fashionable than being popular in Westminster. But popular Zopa is. The…

Posted on 19 October 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Enter our Twitter competition

This month, we're shamelessly stealing ideas from US savings website Smartypig and will be holding our very own competition on Twitter. We've got £25 worth of Vin Vino vouchers up…

Posted on 14 October 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Five Fun Ways to Make Money on the Side

It's our new guest blog spot! Every week or so, Zopa will be inviting a guest to write a blog for us. To get us started, Jasmine Birtles of Money…

Posted on 22 September 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Tom Watson’s Zopa blog

I met Tom Watson when he was a Cabinet Minister, as part of our lobbying efforts on the tax treatment of lenders’ losses and Zopa’s eligibility as an asset class…

Posted on 24 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa v Banks: the debate is on!

Little did I realise that when I posted my first entry on the Zopa blog (“Why the Banks need Zopa", August 7th) , I was firing the starting gun on…

Posted on 20 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Try an idea that does away with banks altogether

'Don't just howl with rage - try an idea that does away with banks altogether.' Well quite. The Guardian's Jonathan Freedland published this article about Zopa and the bonus culture…

Posted on 19 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Jargon Buster – Flexible Loans

When you're looking for an unsecured loan, the term 'flexible loan' is one you will hear frequently. But be aware, because a flexible loan can mean that the APR you…

Posted on 18 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Why the banks need Zopa

As an external adviser who has worked closely with Zopa for many years now, this may seem an odd title for my first Blog on the site. But the events…

Posted on 07 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Jargon Buster – Credit Report

A credit report is a report compiled on every person that contains detailed information on a person’s current and historic credit. This will include loans, mortgages, HP agreements, current accounts…

Posted on 06 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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A mention in the FT Alphaville Blog

We're pleased as punch for a couple of reasons. Firstly, our lenders have hit a huge benchmark because they've now lent a total of £50m to Zopa borrowers since Zopa…

Posted on 06 August 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Bigger than Belfast!

That's right - yesterday we recruited our 300,000th Zopa member, which officially makes us bigger than Belfast! Not only that, but we are more populated than Plymouth, more whopping than…

Posted on 29 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Giles on Zopa

Here's an unusual blog post for you - Giles giving an interview about Zopa. Seriously though, it's worth having a look at this video - it gives a lot of…

Posted on 27 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Moneybox

Why be featured on one Radio 4 programme when you can be on them all? Tomorrow (Saturday 25th July) Giles is scheduled to be on Moneybox to talk about saving…

Posted on 24 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Let’s Start A Bank

Want to start your own bank? Now might be a very good time to do so, unencumbered by the toxic loans and the government bailouts of most of the old…

Posted on 24 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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In Banking, Biggest is Best”?

So queries our MD Giles, when he turned his hand to a bit of journalism for Financial World recently. The article is part of a series of contributions from luminaries…

Posted on 20 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Jargon Buster – Secured and Unsecured Loans

This week we’re looking at the difference between secured and unsecured loans, as well as the advantages and disadvantages. A secured loan is most commonly a loan whereby a borrower’s…

Posted on 20 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Restart your country for the changes to be applied

Last week, Zopa attended a fascinating day event called Reboot Britain, which was a direct response to the Digital Britain report published recently by the Department for Culture, Media and…

Posted on 15 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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News from Zopa Italy

This is a rough translation of an announcement on the Zopa Italy homepage: ”On 10 July 2009 Zopa Italy was notified of the cancellation of its licence to operate as…

Posted on 13 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Our first successful PRIME lister – find out more

Thanks to our character-limit on listings, it's quite a challenge for our PRIME listers to include all the detail they want to on their new business venture as well as…

Posted on 09 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa”s Jargon Buster: AER

AER is short for Annual Equivalent Rate. This is used by banks for savings accounts. Put simply, AER is the estimated interest that you will receive over a year on…

Posted on 07 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa and Good Energy

Hot on the heels of Prime, Zopa have a brand new flavour of Listings which will be going live shortly. We've teamed up with Good Energy, the UK 's only…

Posted on 06 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Watch it live!

Zopa's very own Giles and Christian will be speaking today at around 1.30pm at an event held by our friends at NESTA called Reboot Britain. Christian and Giles don't know…

Posted on 06 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Us Now on More4

Way back in December last year we told you about a film called UsNow that featured Zopa as one of several examples demonstrating the power of the internet to facilitate mass…

Posted on 03 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Want an interest free loan?

We've gone a bit potty this month - all this sun is definitely going to our heads. Not only are we offering any member that refers a friend who joins…

Posted on 01 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s Jargon Buster

Each week, we’ll be getting to the bottom of the real meaning of financial terms bandied about when you’re looking for a loan. It’s everything you ever needed to know…

Posted on 01 July 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Cyberpsychology

We stumbled across this post about us on a blog called Cyberpsychology last week. We got a pretty good write up, and particularly love they way they describe the website…

Posted on 30 June 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Summer Holidays

Summer holiday time is upon us and this year it’s all about the best of British. Now don’t assume that means sitting around on a dirty beach trying to get…

Posted on 18 June 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Budget better online

Do you think you’re generally quite organised with your money, but can’t quite work out exactly where it all goes each month? Same here – even when we think we’re…

Posted on 16 June 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Post Consumerism

No, apparently it doesn't mean the lull you get after lunch - or is that just us? Zopa feature in the recent article entitled Post-Consumerism: Emerging Needs and Market Opportunities…

Posted on 11 June 2009
by Zopian blogger

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The Big Idea

Ever wondered who came up with the idea of Zopa? Think on it no further, because this clip of Giles speaking at a recent event gives an insight into how…

Posted on 08 June 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Love Money love us!

We clearly started a trend when we asked our members to make videos about us - now everyone is at it! Love Money have recently published this independent review about…

Posted on 04 June 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Video Competition

We recently ran a competition asking our members to make short videos about Zopa, and we had a fantastic response. Eagle eyed Zopanoids might have noticed that we've now put…

Posted on 26 May 2009
by Zopian blogger

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The Economist

It's a sure sign that you're growing up when you get written about by publications such as The Economist, so we felt wise beyond our 4-and-a-bit years when we featured…

Posted on 20 May 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Comunitae

Recently the nice folks from Communitae came to visit us, just prior to their launch of a peer-to-peer lending platform in Spain. We hope it was a useful trip for…

Posted on 14 May 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa’s film debut

‘In his student flat in Colchester, Jack Howe is staring intently into his computer screen. He is picking the team for Ebbsfleet United's FA Trophy Semi-Final match against Aldershot. Around…

Posted on 11 May 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Vote for your favourite

You may have spotted that we were running a member competition over the last couple of months in which we asked our members to create a video explaining how Zopa…

Posted on 08 May 2009
by Zopian blogger

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One for the ladies

The girls in the office were rather amused when our friends at Confused.com sent over this new piece of kit on 1st April - to compare your man against the…

Posted on 07 April 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Biscuits and Venn Diagrams

Not an obvious coupling, I'll grant you. You may or may not know (depends on how much you liked Maths at school, I guess) that the Zopa logo is a…

Posted on 03 April 2009
by Zopian blogger

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The recovery starts here!

We were rather chuffed with this article that featured in this morning's FT: "A green shoot Which financial institution has just reported a 140 per cent rise in lending year…

Posted on 25 March 2009
by Zopian blogger

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The little things that make it worthwhile

We had a phonecall this morning from one of our newest borrowers... One of our underwriters spoke to him last week to approve his loan and he rang her back…

Posted on 19 March 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Wanna win £500?

Personally I've never found a decent use for the video camera on my mobile phone, but perhaps we've got just the thing... We're running a competition to find the two…

Posted on 13 March 2009
by Zopian blogger

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We’re 4!

There's a few sore heads in the office this morning after our 4th birthday party last night, which was a great success if we do say so ourselves! Thanks to…

Posted on 06 March 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Punch Magazine – 3rd April 1957

This was sent in by our co-founder James' Dad and featured in an edition of Punch Magazine more than 50 years old: Q: What are banks for? A: To make…

Posted on 25 February 2009
by Zopian blogger

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WeB@nk

A few of us attended last night's WeB@nk event held by NESTA - and it was great to see a few of you guys there too! I shan't summarise the…

Posted on 22 January 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Banks vow to end sales of PPI

The majority of the UK's high street banks recently announced that the days of single premium PPI are numbered - until the end of the month, in fact. Having withdrawn…

Posted on 21 January 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Italy is 1

Doesn't time fly when you're having fun? Well our colleagues over in Italy have definitely been enjoying themselves as they celebrated their first birthday on Friday. In just one year,…

Posted on 20 January 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Five News

Oh yes indeedy! Yet more on-screen attention for Zopa, but this time focusing on two of our members, Ruby and Rob, and how they've helped each other out. Thanks to…

Posted on 16 January 2009
by Zopian blogger

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Join the discussion

Hot on the trail of our recent feature in the UsNow film hosted by Nesta, Zopa will again be featuring in a forthcoming event at the Nesta HQ on 21st…

Posted on 22 December 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Nice noises

The sound of jingling bells is in the air and all of a sudden I'm feeling really rather festive. This got me thinking about those noises that just make you…

Posted on 19 December 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Come and see

"In a world in which information is like air, what happens to power?" That's the opening gambit for a new film, entitled Us Now, about the power of mass collaboration,…

Posted on 05 December 2008
by Zopian blogger

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The sound of twittering

It can be hard to get people to talk about their financial affairs, so I really didn't expect quite so much noise when I rummaged around Twitter recently. Loads of…

Posted on 04 December 2008
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The tricky world of US regulation

Given there’s been plenty happening recently in the world of P2P finance in the US, including our withdrawal from the US market for the moment, I thought I would share…

Posted on 28 November 2008
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Where are the friendliest Zopa members?

In the last few weeks, Zopa has been doing some very technical, in depth research about its members, using the very latest methods, and wanted to share the results with…

Posted on 28 November 2008
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Banning PPI sales at credit point of sale is good for consumers

Interesting news today from the Competition Commission re PPI sales. We used to sell this product but stopped for 2 reasons: 1) we hardly sold any, probably because we simply…

Posted on 13 November 2008
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Zopa on the Beeb

I had to make yet another 'Hello Mum!' sign this week as the Beeb were filming at our office for a feature aired in today's 'Working Lunch' on BBC 2.…

Posted on 13 November 2008
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Have you checked yours?

Thanks to all the recent attention that sub-prime lending has had, people the world over have become increasingly aware of and interested in their own personal credit scores. Technically, you…

Posted on 12 November 2008
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From the horse’s mouth

Not that I'm calling Giles a horse, you understand! We had the people from Finextra in the other day to find out more on how this here credit crunch is…

Posted on 04 November 2008
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In memory of our co-founder, Richard

Richard Duvall, co-founder and CEO of Zopa died two years ago today from pancreatic cancer. I wasn't lucky enough to have met him personally, but his impact on anyone who…

Posted on 16 October 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa U.S.

You probably know that Zopa's US operation has a very different model to that in the UK and Italy in that it works in partnership with financial institutions (the credit…

Posted on 09 October 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Wanna sneak peak of our office?

It was a busy day yesterday! As well as that award ceremony, we had CNN in our office making a film about online banking alternatives, so there was much frenzied…

Posted on 08 October 2008
by Zopian blogger

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You can’t win them all

Giles and I got our posh togs on yesterday evening because Zopa had been nominated for Brand Innovator of the Year at this year's Marketing Week Effectiveness Awards. Sadly, we…

Posted on 08 October 2008
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Global Giving

We'd like to let you know about a new charity that's just launched. Global Giving connects donors to more than 500 grass roots charity projects around the world. So instead…

Posted on 06 October 2008
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100 percent capital reserves

We spotted an interesting blog here the other day. The FSA themselves have suggested as recently as this week that they would consider interviewing future senior directors of financial institutions…

Posted on 02 October 2008
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More on our members

It's always nice to hear about other members in the Zopa community. One of our first borrowers was 'matchsticks' who has used Zopa loans to kick start her recruitment business…

Posted on 30 September 2008
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An intro

I'm safely back from my hols - we covered 2,300 miles and I can confirm that the car is great for cruising down motorways, twisting and turning up and down…

Posted on 22 September 2008
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Thanks to my Zopa lenders

A few months ago, I took a Zopa loan so that my husband and I could buy a car with a bit of welly. Well, we're currently in our 6th…

Posted on 16 September 2008
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Slice of pie chart anyone?

A few weeks ago, we went survey-crazy and asked almost every single one of our members to 'sock it to us'. Well, when you ask, you get, and I've been…

Posted on 04 September 2008
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Another benchmark or two

Not so long ago we were making a big fuss about welcoming our 200,000th member to our community and now we can add a couple more notches to our list:…

Posted on 02 September 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa Ambassadors arrive!

We're dead chuffed to announce that we've recruited a small group of Zopa Ambassadors to our discussion forum to help out any new borrowers who have questions before, during or…

Posted on 01 September 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Apples and apples?

An interesting article recently published in the Independent reveals some of the workings of the now ubiquitous comparison websites. There’s no doubt that they certainly do provide a service much…

Posted on 28 August 2008
by Zopian blogger

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A tsunami

On the back of my last post, we were double pleased with how things were going, but it seems that was nothing! Last Friday saw a veritable tsunami of loan…

Posted on 21 August 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Busy and loving it

Crumbs and crikey! We've just had a couple of seriously busy weeks, hitting all time greatest numbers of applications and loan disbursals. AND our listings are more popular than ever,…

Posted on 14 August 2008
by Zopian blogger

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The long tail…

Simon used to be a fellow Zopite and recently published this interesting article. He discusses the role that social networking has to play in allowing consumers to react to macro-economics…

Posted on 08 August 2008
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Bit of a catch up

An even more belated blog this time... we're very naughty we know, but we haven't 'alf been busy. So loads to update you on: We welcomed our 200,000th member a…

Posted on 31 July 2008
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Zopa voted “Most Threatening Non-Bank Competitor

Had a very jolly evening on Wednesday night at a posh London Hotel when we won "one of the most sought-after prizes at a prestigious awards ceremony." (According to the…

Posted on 04 April 2008
by Zopian blogger

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Happy birthday to Zopa and welcome Japan

Zopa is three years old today! It isn't just us who's reached the grand age of 3 - today also marks the third birthday of peer-to-peer lending. We were the…

Posted on 07 March 2008
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10% in 2010

The web has revolutionised pretty much everything and continues to do so, and ever since day one (and clearly for a good few days before then) at Zopa we’ve believed…

Posted on 21 February 2008
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No January blues at Zopa

There has been a wide array of intriguing stories coming out of the Credit Crisis and I thought I’d share one which has more than a little irony… Our biggest…

Posted on 05 February 2008
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Opaque banking practices

Those doubting that we live in a ‘globalised’ world would do well to recognise that the Northern Rock mess of the last couple of weeks actually had its beginnings in…

Posted on 25 September 2007
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Lender returns at Zopa

There has been much talk on our discussion boards about lender returns at Zopa and how we calculate them. Zopa loans are capital and interest loans – with borrowers repaying…

Posted on 20 September 2007
by Zopian blogger

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In search of lost Zopa

Imagine, if you will, that you’d never heard of Zopa. A horrible though, I know. But fear not: chances are we would be brought back together by the wonders that…

Posted on 05 September 2007
by Zopian blogger

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Sunnier climes for Zopa

Zopa is expanding abroad. As is well documented we will be launching in the US later this year and are working with Italian partners towards a similar goal. Less well…

Posted on 21 August 2007
by Zopian blogger

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to invest or not to…

I know, trite title - bear with me though... I just joined the team at Zopa. Previously I worked at Interactive Investor. the main focus of my efforts there was…

Posted on 18 June 2007
by Zopian blogger

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Mixing it up in Vegas (baby)

Zopa has been working with Microsoft for a few months now - looking at ways in which we can use some of their new Windows Live services to provide useful…

Posted on 11 May 2007
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We’re up for a Webby!

It's all very exciting - for those that don't know, a Webby is the online version of an Oscar (but with fewer emotional thank you speeches...well, probably) and is the…

Posted on 11 April 2007
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Now we are two.

"Happy Birthday dear Zopa, happy birthday to us!" Crikey - was it really 2 years ago that we pushed the button on the Zopa website, and opened it up to…

Posted on 07 March 2007
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Zopa.tv

Continuing our general theme of taking over the world's media - we popped up on the Channel 4 TV news last night. A very lovely little piece was made multiple…

Posted on 01 March 2007
by Zopian blogger

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New toys

We're just putting in a new release - which has some long awaited features for lenders. In ascending order of importance... Firstly we've replaced the existing lending summary screen with…

Posted on 24 January 2007
by Zopian blogger

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Get yer Zopa mug….on eBay

OK - so someone clearly wasn't as enamored of their Zopa Christmas present as we hoped they would be! Check out this eBay auction and see if anyone has decided…

Posted on 21 January 2007
by Zopian blogger

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Remembering Richard

As you may be aware, Richard Duvall, our co-founder and CEO, passed away in October shortly after being diagnosed with Pancreatic cancer. Tomorrow (Tuesday 9th January) we will be holding…

Posted on 08 January 2007
by Zopian blogger

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Top websites of 2006

Well - everyone else seems to be making lists at this time of year, and I'm not one to let a perfectly good bandwagon go past un jumped upon, so....…

Posted on 22 December 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Slow, slow, quick, quick, Zopa

Avid Zopa lenders might have noticed a slow down in their money being lent out over the last few weeks - so I thought I’d take a quick opportunity to…

Posted on 18 December 2006
by Zopian blogger

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It was only a little one (on the way in…)

Slightly silly Friday afternoon post - forgive me, it's been a hard week. Thomas (our resident guru of all things technical) made a very intelligent, reasonable and considered comment on…

Posted on 08 December 2006
by Zopian blogger

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The Zopa mugs (sorry….)

Tom and Drew. Two new Zopa mugs. And a picnic. Never let it be said that Zopa men are afraid to show their metrosexual side by eating salad and steamed…

Posted on 28 November 2006
by Zopian blogger

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It’s us. On TV!

Thanks to Pete and Chris, and the lovely BBC for a great piece on tonight's 6 o'clock news!

Posted on 23 November 2006
by Zopian blogger

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New release details

Just a quick post to let you all know what's coming up in the next few days. The release is ready to go, but we're holding off while we're expecting…

Posted on 23 November 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa on TV (Properly this time!)

We've just had confirmation from the BBC that (subject to no huge breaking news story) we'll be on the BBC1 6 o'clock news tonight. Obviously we're expecting a wave of…

Posted on 23 November 2006
by Zopian blogger

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The Zopa water feature!

Looks like someone read our little piece over there on the left about how we don't believe in expensive and fancy water features - and decided to sort something out…

Posted on 31 October 2006
by Zopian blogger

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The hardest post

It is with enormous sadness and regret that I write these words on behalf of everyone at Zopa. Richard Duvall, our co-founder and CEO quietly passed away early on Monday…

Posted on 17 October 2006
by Zopian blogger

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The morning after…

Q. What do you get if you take 97 Brahma beers, 8 bottles of wine (the white was better...), 9 big plates tapas, 25 Zopa t-shirts, 6 Zopa people and…

Posted on 13 October 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa on TV! (Sort of)

You might have caught the latest Money Supermarket adverts on TV recently. If you're particularly eagle eyed you might spotted the odd Zopa logo whizzing past at high speed. If…

Posted on 03 October 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa – Now award winning

You might remember a previous post about Zopa being nominated for the Internet Innovation of the Year award at the CNET Networks UK Technology awards. Well, we only went and…

Posted on 27 September 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Mmmm….back to work

Blimey. You go away to get married for a few weeks, and come back to find the blog's been taken over by poisonous cous-cous (Yes I suffered as well...), dodgy…

Posted on 19 September 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Zopa = Top UK Web 2.0 App

While the arguments rage about what exactly is meant by Web 2.0, Richard MacManus over at Read / Write Web has kindly listed Zopa as Top UK Web 2.0 App…

Posted on 07 August 2006
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New, improved Zopa: Now washes whiter!

As you may know, we've been working away on a new look and feel for the Zopa website - and we thought it was about time we invited you in…

Posted on 19 July 2006
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We”ve been nominated!

Just a quicky...but I wanted to let you know that Zopa has been nominated for an award in the CNET Networks UK Technology awards. We're one of the finalists in…

Posted on 11 July 2006
by Zopian blogger

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A Zopa lender writes (Second guest post!)

"1020990" is a Zopa lender, and an active member of the Zopa discussion boards. No one knows what the numbers mean - a bit like Lost. :) So how did…

Posted on 10 July 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Where’s Cliff?

So, despite the slightly daft heat we're experiencing in London at the moment, many people are about to jet off to (possibly cooler) climes for their summer holiday, and I…

Posted on 05 July 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Powerlenders are go!

We had a web site release yesterday - which I've said I won't write about here any more (and talk about them on the discussion boards instead), but this was…

Posted on 04 July 2006
by Zopian blogger

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One Water

You might have noticed that over there on the right of the screen is a link to One Water. Why? Well, not withstanding the fact that we think it's an…

Posted on 30 June 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Opening up Zopa data

You might not have noticed, but over on the discussion board we've been talking about the new Zopa API (v0.5!). An API is a a way that third parties (members,…

Posted on 21 June 2006
by Zopian blogger

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We’ve gone Mac and aren’t going back!

We tried Skype, we heard robots. We tried email, but the message (and relationships) couldn’t be nurtured right. We bought iSight, but lacked universal reach (only Mac compatible). So we…

Posted on 14 June 2006
by Zopian blogger

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A blogging experiment

Late Friday afternoon and ones thoughts turn to the blog, and how little has been written on it recently. (A recurring theme I know...) I want to try something new.…

Posted on 02 June 2006
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Bad design?

So Richard and I are back from San Francisco, and delighted to be experiencing the best of the British summer! One more photo from the US though - again from…

Posted on 22 May 2006
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Avoiding the geek trap

Josh Kopelman has an interesting post where he talk about companies that target a very early adopter community of 'Web 2.0 geeks.' As Zopa's resident geek, this struck a cord.…

Posted on 12 May 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Thinking outside the parking space

I'm over in sunny San Francisco right now and as usual, things in America are just a bit different. This is the view of the local parking lot from the…

Posted on 11 May 2006
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Social Communities and Financial Services

Years ago a man by the name of Muhammad Yunus illustrated that the very poor can be a good credit risk when the right circumstances are in place – ex:…

Posted on 05 May 2006
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It’s good to talk (to our members)

A few weeks ago, Justin and myself had a really great evening. Not by ourselves, I hasten to add (Lest our our better halves be reading), but with a group…

Posted on 27 April 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Skyping Zopa

We'd love to be the next Skype (Well, wouldn't you?), but in the mean time we've finally got ourselves Skyped up - and much hilarity in the office ensued as…

Posted on 25 April 2006
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Weekend musings

Regular readers (Are there any of you out there?) will have noticed a hiatus in blog posts over the last couple of weeks - apologies. 2 main reasons: Firstly, I've…

Posted on 21 April 2006
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A delicate balancing act

The discussion board has been busy since we announced the introdution of fees last week, and I thought it might be worth linking to a an Economist article that seemed…

Posted on 08 April 2006
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A fee in our ear.

As you might have noticed, we've generated some passionate debate over at the discussion board about the introduction of fees. You can read for yourself the pro's and con's in…

Posted on 03 April 2006
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Now we are 1.

Today is March 7th 2006. Not an auspicious day you might think, but you'd be (slightly) wrong. 1 year ago today, there was a small earthquake in world of financial…

Posted on 07 March 2006
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Blame Canada!

So the old saying goes that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery...so I guess we should be flattered? Take a look and see what you think. Spot the difference?…

Posted on 30 January 2006
by Zopian blogger

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What’s in your sweet shop?

Nothing deep and meaningful on a Friday afternoon - just the Zopa Friday Sweet Bowls. Oh yes. Already half eaten alas... What was your sweet shop favourite? Kola Kubes get…

Posted on 27 January 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Big brother banking?

Interesting article over at the BBC about how technology could transform bank branches. The article talk about how Accenture have designed a bank 'branch of the future' that uses RFID…

Posted on 23 January 2006
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T-Shirts and goats

Not normally 2 things you'd put together I realise. Well, not before about 3 in the morning, a bottle of wine and several large whiskies, (or maybe that's just me?)…

Posted on 19 January 2006
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Lender goodness

Sorry for the absence of blog posting over the last month - I've been busy / on holiday / detoxing / turning 30 (Delete as desired). You might have noticed…

Posted on 19 January 2006
by Zopian blogger

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Simple is as simple does

We're spending a lot of time at the moment thinking about the next generation of Zopa - and as you might imagine, we have lots (and lots) of ideas about…

Posted on 28 November 2005
by Zopian blogger

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Now departing from platform 6

If you travelled into London over the last couple of weeks you might have seen some shady characters in Zopa fleeces standing at stations, handing out leaflets - well, don't…

Posted on 28 November 2005
by Zopian blogger

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Fantastic members!

If you're not a borrower at Zopa, there is a little feature that may have escaped your notice. We think it's great, and what some of our members do with…

Posted on 10 November 2005
by Zopian blogger

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More lenders needed!

Zopa is a funny beast - sort of a pushmi-pullyu if you like. Sometimes we need more borrowers (to help our lenders), sometimes we need more lenders (to help our…

Posted on 08 November 2005
by Zopian blogger

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An intro to Zopa and credit scoring

This is an old post from 2005. For more up-to-date information on how Zopa uses credit scores to make lending decisions, read our 2016 blog post, Zopa and Credit Scores.…

Posted on 18 October 2005
by Zopian blogger

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blog.zopa.com v0.1

Finally, we've got the Zopa blog up and running! This will be a space to hear about the latest developments at Zopa, what we're up to inside the company and…

Posted on 02 September 2005
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