PeopleFund

What PeopleFund does

PeopleFund (also branded as Cple/크플) is South Korea's leading AI-driven peer-to-peer lending platform, operated by PFC Technologies Co., Ltd. (피에프씨테크놀로지스(주)), a private fintech headquartered in Seocho-gu, Seoul. The company connects retail investors with underserved consumer borrowers who have limited access to traditional banking credit, running a mobile-first platform that allows investments from a 5,000 KRW minimum ticket and reports an average investor return of 10.7%. Following regulatory approval from South Korea's Financial Services Commission (FSC) in 2021, PeopleFund operates as an authorized financial institution under an online investment-linked finance business registration.

The core product surface consists of P2P investment products, a Secondary Market (세컨드 마켓) that lets investors trade rights to their holdings, and a loan-comparison service (KBalda/ KB알다 대출비교). Underpinning the platform are proprietary AI-powered credit scoring algorithms and AI-based risk management technology that process structured borrower financial data for underwriting and default-risk prediction. The company monetizes through transaction fees and interest-rate spreads on originated loans, with $100M of equity capital and $240M of 2022 debt financing supporting the lending book.

PeopleFund has raised multiple rounds of equity capital (cumulative ~$100M) from a syndicate including Bain Capital, Goldman Sachs, CLSA Capital Partners, 500 Global, KakaoPay, Kakao Investment, Shinhan Capital, Shinhan Investment, D3 Jubilee, and IBX. The company has accumulated notable recognition, including a 2019 Prime Minister's Commendation for financial innovation, the first Korean fintech 'Deal of the Year' at the IFLR APAC Awards (2024), and features by Bloomberg and CNBC. Operations remain exclusively within South Korea, and a formal P2P lending license is among stated forward plans.

Name

PeopleFund

Legal name

피에프씨테크놀로지스(주)

Website

https://peoplefund.co.kr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

PeopleFund (Cple/크플) is South Korea's leading AI-driven P2P lending platform, operated by PFC Technologies Co., Ltd., connecting retail investors with underserved consumer borrowers via FSC-authorized mobile-first investment products and a Secondary Market for investment rights.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Consumer Lending (P2P Lending)

NAICS

Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (522)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141)

akta.pro primary industry

Consumer P2P Personal Loans (Unsecured) (FSAKAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

P2P Loan Syndication & Participation Platforms (FSAKAHAL)

Keywords

• P2P lending platform
• Digital consumer lending
• AI credit scoring
• Online investment products
• Secondary market trading

Headquarters

HQ city

Seoul

HQ country

South Korea

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. P2P Lending Platform: PeopleFund operates a peer-to-peer lending platform connecting borrowers with lenders. The company earns revenue through transaction fees and interest rate spreads on loans originated through the platform.
2. Investment Products: Platform offers various investment products with reported average returns of 10.7%, generating platform fees from investment transactions

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

PeopleFund operates a South Korean digital P2P lending platform that lets individual investors fund consumer loans starting from 5,000 KRW with reported average returns of 10.7%, while providing borrowers access to credit through AI-evaluated loan products. Core offerings include fractional investment products, a secondary marketplace (Second Market) for trading investment product rights, and a loan comparison service (KBalda). The company earns transaction fees and interest-rate spreads on loans originated via the platform.

Product overview

PeopleFund (크플) operates as a unified P2P lending and investment platform in South Korea. The core offering consists of 세컨드 마켓 (Second Market), a secondary marketplace for trading investment rights, combined with investment products that enable investors to fund loans starting from 5,000 KRW with average returns of 10.7%. The platform also integrates KB알다 대출비교 (KBalda Loan Comparison) as a supplementary service for loan comparison. All offerings are connected through AI-powered credit scoring and risk management technology.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 세컨드 마켓 (Second Market): A secondary market platform where investors can buy and sell investment product rights at any time.

Products and services

• Second Market (세컨드 마켓) A secondary marketplace on the Cple platform where investors can buy and sell the rights to PeopleFund investment products at any time, providing liquidity to investors who want to exit positions before loan maturity.
• Investment Products (투자 상품) Fractional P2P lending investment opportunities on the Cple platform that let individual investors fund consumer loans starting from 5,000 KRW, with reported average returns of 10.7% and monthly interest payments.
• KBalda Loan Comparison (KB알다 대출비교) A loan comparison service available on the Cple platform that helps users compare personal credit loans and housing-collateral loans from multiple lenders.

Quantifiable outcome

• Average return rate of 10.7%

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and minor.

• CLSA Capital PartnersflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCLSA Capital Partners entered into a strategic partnership with PeopleFund, marking a significant collaboration for the fintech company.
• Jeonbuk BankminorOthersJeonbuk Bank (주식회사 전북은행) serves as the depository institution for PeopleFund's customer deposits.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Upstart: AI-driven lending platform using ML-based credit scoring to originate personal loans through bank partners. Comparable to PeopleFund in its reliance on proprietary AI underwriting models to serve underserved consumer credit demand.
• Honestfund (어니스트펀드): Korean P2P lending platform offering consumer and SME investment products with similar transaction-fee revenue model. Operates as a licensed online investment-linked finance business directly competing with PeopleFund.
• Zopa: UK P2P lending platform (now a digital bank) historically known for consumer P2P loans funded by retail investors. Comparable to PeopleFund in retail-investor minimums, loan-origination focus, and AI-assisted credit decisioning evolution.
• 8Percent: One of South Korea's largest P2P lending platforms, operating a similar consumer-facing model with diversified investment products. Direct competitor to PeopleFund in the Korean online investment-linked finance market.
• Funding Circle: UK-listed P2P / marketplace lending platform connecting SMEs with institutional and retail investors. Operates a similar intermediary model with transaction fees, though SME-focused rather than consumer-focused like PeopleFund.
• LendingClub: U.S.-listed P2P lending pioneer connecting borrowers with individual and institutional investors via a digital marketplace. Closest global analog to PeopleFund's business model, including AI-enhanced credit underwriting and secondary-market loan trading.
• Prosper Marketplace: U.S. P2P lending platform originating fixed-rate, unsecured consumer loans funded by retail and institutional investors. Highly comparable to PeopleFund in transaction-fee revenue, retail investor minimums, and AI-driven credit decisioning.

Regional players

• Moneybro (머니브로): Korean online investment-linked finance (P2P) platform with comparable retail-investor product offerings. Regional peer competing in the same Korean market with similar regulatory standing and product positioning.

Broad incumbents

• KakaoBank: Korea's largest internet-only bank offering consumer loans, mortgages, and deposits via a super-app. Represents the deposit-funded incumbent threat to PeopleFund's non-bank consumer credit positioning in the same Korean market.
• Viva Republica (Toss): Korean super-app fintech offering payments, investments, and consumer credit products. Competes with PeopleFund for the same underserved Korean consumer segment but operates a broader platform with deposit and payment rails.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/peoplefundcompany

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds11 records

Investors17 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PeopleFund