Maneo

Maneo Inc., established in April 2007 by co-founder Tadatoshi Senoo, is recognized as Japan's first peer-to-peer (P2P) social lending platform. The company launched its online marketplace, maneo.jp, in October 2008 to connect individual and, later, business borrowers with lenders, aiming to bypass the complexities of traditional financial institutions. Senoo, drawing from his banking background, identified a gap in the financial market for younger individuals and those seeking more customized loan conditions than what banks offered.

Initially, Maneo facilitated loans for individuals, employing a proprietary scoring system to assess borrower risk based on factors like income, debt, and employment. The platform operated on an auction system where lenders would bid on loan listings, with the lowest interest rate bids winning the loan. In 2009, the company partnered with Orix Credit Corporation to introduce a guaranteed loan product called "G-Loan" to reduce lender risk. A significant shift occurred in 2011 when Maneo pivoted from individual loans to focus exclusively on lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), with a notable concentration in the real estate sector.

The business model involves Maneo managing the administrative aspects of the loans and generating revenue through fees associated with the platform's services. The platform provides an alternative investment opportunity for lenders, who can earn interest typically ranging from 5% to 8% annually. Throughout its history, Maneo has secured venture capital funding from firms including J-Seed Ventures Inc., Yasuda Enterprise Development, and GMO VenturePartners.

Keywords: peer-to-peer lending, social lending, SME financing, online marketplace, debt financing, P2P loans, financial services, investment platform, alternative finance, Japan, real estate lending, corporate loans, auction loan system, credit scoring, business loans