Prosper is in talks with Chinese conglomerate Linca to sell an approximately 10% stake in the company; according to the source, Linca would invest $50 million in Prosper at a valuation of about $550 million, reducing Prosper's value from approximately $2 billion reported in 2015; plans for its recent $5 billion investment in loans on the platform from a consortium of investors continues and this new deal is reportedly expected to help provide capital for future investments. Source
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LPL has increased their technology spending from $38 million in 2011 to $77 million in 2016; tech executives from the firm say that when it comes to wealth management, innovation firms, like Acorns, are better concepts for inspiration than for instance Betterment; company believes that micro transactions for savings are an important part of the younger generation's experience and the company is taking a generational approach to products to offer a customized product for each type of client; LPL is launching their new robot advice platform, Guided Wealth, this month. Source
Big banks reported their seventh consecutive month of increased approval rates at 24.1%; small bank lending approvals decreased in February to 48.8% from 48.9%; institutional lending approvals reached a new high of 63.5%; the approval rate for credit unions remained at 40.8%; the loan approval rate for alternative lenders decreased to 58.4% from 58.5% in January and has been trending lower over the past twelve months with February 2016 reporting an approval rate of 60.8%. Source
