October
October is a Paris-based fintech that operates a European SME lending marketplace across five countries, connecting more than 4,000 SMEs with retail and institutional investors, and sells its proprietary ML credit-scoring technology to banks via October Connect.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersParis, France
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What October does
October (October SA) is a Paris-headquartered fintech founded in 2015 that operates a hybrid European SME lending marketplace across France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, and Germany. The platform connects small and medium-sized enterprises with both retail lenders and institutional capital, using a model in which institutional investors automatically finance 51% of each project and the remaining 49% is offered to retail lenders. Loan products include standard loans up to €5 million with maturities up to 84 months, instant loans below €250,000, lease financing, and country-specific state-guaranteed products (Bpifrance in France, BMKB in the Netherlands, Fondo di Garanzia in Italy). As of the latest disclosures the platform has financed more than 4,000 SMEs, mobilising over €500 million in loans and supporting 30,000 retail investors and an institutional base that includes CNP Assurances, Allianz, Groupama, Matmut, the European Investment Fund, the European Investment Bank, CDP, and Bpifrance.
Underpinning the credit decisioning is a proprietary ML-based scoring stack branded as the X-Ray family: Financial X-Ray and Transactional X-Ray perform probability-of-default and affordability analysis; Doc X-Ray and Manager X-Ray handle fraud and governance checks; ESG X-Ray enables SFDR-compliant sustainability scoring; and the Magpie model automates funding-request scoring. The company packages these capabilities into October Connect, a SaaS neolending technology licensed to banks and financial institutions, and into October Factory, an AMF-regulated asset management subsidiary that runs ELTIF-labeled debt investment funds including October SME V. October's official lender page now states that the platform no longer offers new financing solutions or accepts new lender accounts, with operations focused on managing the existing loan portfolio, signalling a shift away from active marketplace origination toward the B2B SaaS and asset management businesses.
October firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- October
- Legal name
- October SA
- Website
- https://october.eu
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- October is a Paris-based fintech that operates a European SME lending marketplace across five countries, connecting more than 4,000 SMEs with retail and institutional investors, and sells its proprietary ML credit-scoring technology to banks via October Connect.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
October industry classification
Industry- Product category
- SME Lending Platform
- NAICS
- Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310), Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (52231), Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)
- SIC
- Loan Brokers (6163), Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Marketplace & Loan Aggregation Platforms (Borrower-Lender Matching) (FSAGAHAL)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Merchant Cash Advance & Revenue-Based Financing Enablement (FSAGALAH)
Keywords
Where October is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paris
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
October business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Interest Rate Spread: October charges borrowers interest rates determined by credit score, risk-free return in the company's country of origin, analysis type, level of security, and loan duration. The spread between lending rates and rates paid to investors represents platform revenue.
- Fund Management Fees: October Factory, the wholly owned asset management company regulated by AMF, manages debt investment funds (ELTIF) and generates management fees from institutional investors.
- October Connect Technology Licensing: SaaS software licensing revenue from October Connect neolending technology sold to banks and financial institutions for credit process digitization.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | SME Loans up to €5M with maturity up to 84 months |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Lease from €30k to €5M with maturity up to 63 months |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Bpifrance Guaranteed Loans up to €1,500,000 |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Monthly | Instant Loans below €250,000 |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
October product offering
Product offeringCore offering
October operates a European online marketplace that connects small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking business financing with retail and institutional lenders across France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany. The platform enables direct lending through loan products up to €5M, supported by proprietary ML-based credit scoring models. October also offers October Connect, a white-label neolending technology platform licensed to banks and financial institutions for end-to-end credit processing. Loan portfolio management is conducted via October Factory, a wholly-owned AMF-regulated asset management subsidiary operating ELTIF-labeled debt investment funds.
Product overview
October is a European SME lending platform operating in France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, and Germany. The platform offers two main offerings: (1) October Direct Lending Platform for peer-to-peer SME lending connecting borrowers with retail and institutional investors, providing standard loans up to €5M and instant loans up to €250,000; and (2) October Connect, a white-label neolending technology platform for banks and financial institutions. October Connect comprises modular analysis tools including Financial X-Ray (ML-based credit scoring), Transactional X-Ray (bank transaction analysis), Bank X-Ray (statement analysis), Doc X-Ray (document fraud detection), Manager X-Ray (governance analysis), and ESG X-Ray (sustainability risk assessment). The company also operates October Factory, an AMF-regulated asset management subsidiary managing debt investment funds including the ELTIF-labeled October SME V fund. For borrower protection, October offers state-guaranteed loan products including Bpifrance-guaranteed loans (France), BMKB-guaranteed loans (Netherlands), and Fondo di Garanzia loans (Italy).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- October Connect: Neolending technology solution for banks and financial institutions that enables efficient and secure credit processes for SMEs.
- October Factory
Products and services
- October Direct Lending Platform
- October Connect
- Standard Loans
- Lease Financing
- Instant Projects
- Bpifrance Guaranteed Loans
- Dutch State Guaranteed Loans (BMKB)
- Italian State Guaranteed Loans (Fondo di Garanzia)
- October SME V Fund
Quantifiable outcome
- IRR post-default of 4.59% vs 5.99% pre-default for diversified portfolios
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use October
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
October technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability9 records
Feature8 records
October partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.
- ENGIEflagshipFrench multinational utility company partnered with October to create i-DEAL, the first internal neolending engagement platform enabling employees to lend to internal business projects. Pilot launched with group of employees, extended in January 2021.
- October FactorycoreWholly owned asset management company of October SA, regulated by AMF (registration GP-16000030), manages October's debt investment funds including ELTIF-labeled funds.
Scale indicators12 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
October competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Younited Credit: French marketplace credit platform connecting retail/institutional lenders with consumer and small-business borrowers. Directly overlaps with October's pan-European marketplace lending model and European brokerage value proposition.
- Funding Circle: UK-origin SMB marketplace lending platform operating across the UK, US, Germany, and the Netherlands. Directly comparable in target market (SMEs), investor structure (institutional + retail), and cross-border expansion strategy.
- iwoca: UK fintech providing working capital and term loans to SMEs using automated credit decisioning. Closely comparable to October's Instant Loans / Financial X-Ray instantiation on the SME side and a key European competitor.
- Defacto: French fintech offering embedded invoice financing and short-term credit to SMEs via a marketplace/API model. Overlaps with October on SME borrower profile and on the Brokerage / Activities Related to Credit Intermediation axis.
- Karmen: French revenue-based financing platform serving SMEs with similar loan size profile to October's Instant Loans. Direct competitor on the French SME lending front with comparable automated credit analytics.
- Mintos: European-based loan marketplace aggregating consumer and SME loans from multiple originators. Comparable marketplace structure with retail and institutional investors and a multi-country European footprint similar to October's.
- Creditshelf: German digital SME lending marketplace serving mid-market borrowers; comparable to October on European SME lending scope, institutional fund structure, and credit technology stack.
- Biz2Credit: US SME lending marketplace and credit decisioning platform for small-business borrowers. Comparable on marketplace SME lending model and B2B credit technology distribution angle.
Broad incumbents
- LendingClub: US-headquartered pioneering marketplace lending platform offering consumer and SMB loans. Broader incumbent in the same product category with overlapping business model (borrower-lender matching marketplace) but greater scale and US focus.
- Upstart: US AI lending platform selling credit decisioning to banks and originating its own loans — directly comparable to October's October Connect (BaaS credit decisioning) plus lending marketplace business model.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
October social profiles
Digital presenceOctober compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
October financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
October leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles17 records
October subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
October funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors20 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
October M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A2 records
Investments9 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about October
What does October do?
October operates a European online marketplace that connects small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking business financing with retail and institutional lenders across France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany. The platform enables direct lending through loan products up to €5M, supported by proprietary ML-based credit scoring models. October also offers October Connect, a white-label neolending technology platform licensed to banks and financial institutions for end-to-end credit processing. Loan portfolio management is conducted via October Factory, a wholly-owned AMF-regulated asset management subsidiary operating ELTIF-labeled debt investment funds.
Is October a public or private company?
October is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was October founded?
October was founded in 2015. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is October based?
October is headquartered in Paris, France, in the Europe region.
How does October make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Interest Rate Spread is the primary driver. The others are fund Management Fees and october Connect Technology Licensing.
Who are October's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Younited Credit, Funding Circle, iwoca, Defacto, Karmen, Mintos, Creditshelf and Biz2Credit. Broad incumbents are LendingClub and Upstart.
Does October have an API?
No public API is recorded for October.
What industry is October in?
October's product category is SME Lending Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGAHAL, Marketplace & Loan Aggregation Platforms (Borrower-Lender Matching), with a secondary code of FSAGALAH, Merchant Cash Advance & Revenue-Based Financing Enablement. Its NAICS code is 522310 and its SIC code is 6163.