Prospa postpones $146 million IPO indefinitely

Small business lending startup Prospa has confirmed it has postponed its listing on the Australian Securities Exchange indefinitely, after it announced a 48-hour delay 30 minutes before it was due to list on Wednesday.

The fintech startup, which won the 2016 Smart50 awards, had planned to ring the ASX bell on Wednesday, but at the last minute announced a delay.

Today, the listing has been pushed back again, with no indication of rescheduling.

When the initial delay was announced on Wednesday, a spokesperson said the business was seeking “to clarify queries raised by ASIC yesterday in relation to Prospa’s small business loan terms in the context of an industry wide review into financial services small business loan terms”.

In a statement today, Prospa said ASIC requested information as part of a broader industry review of small business lending contract terms, and the initial delay came as a response to this.

The statement said: “Over the past 48 hours, Prospa has constructively engaged with ASIC to review its current loan terms and has provided detailed information in response to the regulator’s queries.” Read more

Stephanie Palmer-Derrien - Smart Company - 8 Jun 2018