unveiled a regime earlier this year under new European Union rules covering the industry.
Grid changed its business model in 2019 and got out of crowdfunding. It now focuses on providing short-term loans to businesses that earn money from credit card and debit card sales – an area known as merchant card financing. Mr Butler has told The Irish Times in recent days that the company would not be returning to the P2P market.Grid lent out about €10 million in each of the last two years and expects to write €25 million of business in 2022. It currently charges interest rates of 7-12 per cent a year, depending on the risk attached to customers.
Mr Butler said the flexibility of its product, which allows borrowers to make lower payments during quiet months, means its lending momentum is “very strong”, even as underlying demand for credit among SMEs remains low. “Demand for credit in general is likely to remain subdued, as businesses continue to work out what the post-pandemic economy will look like and they monitor inflation and other macro factors, such as the war in