Raize

What Raize does

Raize is a Portuguese peer-to-peer lending marketplace founded in 2015 that connects retail investors with financing for small and medium enterprises. It is dually regulated by the CMVM (Securities Market Commission) for crowdfunding activity and by Banco de Portugal for payment services, and is listed on Euronext Lisbon under the ticker RAIZE. The platform screens SMEs through an internal risk-rating model that prices borrower rates from TANB 4.99% upward and targets an investor gross annual return of 5.95% after uncollectibles, with default tracking and a Tracker auto-investment engine that automates loan selection against investor-defined parameters.

Across its operating history the platform has registered 78,000+ investors, analyzed 26,000+ companies, completed 4,350+ SME financings, and transacted a cumulative €29,618,281 through 1,990,946 investor transactions. Reported performance metrics include a 5.87% gross annual return after uncollectibles, returns positive for 98%+ of investors, and a cumulative gross return of 83.83% over 124 months. Regular loan volumes were €23.5M (2023), €24.2M (2024) and €28.4M (2025), with annual default rates of 1.55%, 3.60% and 0.167% respectively.

The business operates through the Raize parent and two subsidiaries — Raizecrowd (the crowdfunding marketplace) and Insuraize (insurance distribution). Revenue is generated from the spread between borrower interest rates and investor returns, supplemented by insurance commissions, auto-invest and secondary-market fees, and issuance fees from the new PME Bonds product. Distribution partnerships include Banco Best for investor acquisition and SIBS for ESG-diagnostic integration within Portugal's retail payments infrastructure.

Name

Raize

Legal name

Raize - Instituição de Pagamentos, S.A.

Website

https://raize.pt

Company type

Public

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Raize is a CMVM- and Banco de Portugal-regulated Portuguese P2P lending marketplace that matches retail investors with SME financing, supported by an auto-invest engine, an insurance subsidiary (Insuraize) and a new SME bond-issuance product (PME Bonds).

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Peer-to-Peer Lending Marketplace

NAICS

Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (523940)

SIC

Loan Brokers (6163), Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)

akta.pro primary industry

P2P Small Business / SME Marketplace Lending (FSAKAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

SME Term Loans & Growth Capital (FSAKAGAB)

Keywords

• Peer-to-peer lending
• SME business financing
• Crowdfunding platform
• Alternative investment
• Bond issuance services

Headquarters

HQ city

Lisboa

HQ country

Portugal

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Interest Rate Spread / Loan Origination Fees: Raize earns revenue from the spread between investor returns and borrower interest rates. Interest rates (TANB) start at 4.99% for lowest-risk borrowers and are set based on risk and loan term. The platform charges commissions适应性 to the financing structure, including applicable interest and fees (TAE example: 7.82% for a €25,000 loan over 60 months). No early repayment penalties are charged.
2. Insurance Distribution (Insuraize): Through Insuraize - Sociedade Unipessoal, Lda (insurance agent registered with ASF under No. 420563248), Raize earns commissions from distributing life and non-life insurance products to borrowers and investors on the platform.
3. PME Bonds Issuance Services: Raize acts as a pioneer in creating the SME bond market in Portugal, offering bond issuance services with BPF (Banco Português de Financiamento) guarantee at 80% pre-approval, enabling companies to access the bond market with terms up to 7 years.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Raize is a regulated P2P lending and crowdfunding marketplace that connects Portuguese retail investors with SMEs seeking business financing. The platform offers business loans (Financiamento) with terms up to 60 months and interest rates starting at 4.99% TANB, PME Bonds issuance with 80% BPF guarantee and terms up to 7 years, and an investor platform (Investir) with automated portfolio allocation, monthly return distributions, and a secondary market. All operations are fully digital with 48-hour approval and 5-day funding.

Product overview

Raize is a crowdfunding lending platform operating as a two-sided marketplace connecting investors seeking returns with Portuguese SMEs needing financing. The platform consists of three main products: (1) Financiamento - business lending for working capital and investment with up to 60-month terms, (2) PME Bonds - bond issuance for SMEs with BPF guarantee, and (3) Investir - P2P investment platform with automated Tracker. Supporting infrastructure includes the Raize Mobile App for iOS/Android, Insuraize insurance services, and Raize - Instituição de Pagamentos for payment processing. The platform is regulated by CMVM (crowdfunding) and Banco de Portugal (payments), with Raize - Instituição de Pagamentos listed on Euronext Lisbon.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Financiamento (Business Financing) Business lending offering for Portuguese SMEs covering working capital (treasury) and investment financing, with monthly principal amortization over terms up to 60 months, interest rates (TANB) starting at 4.99% for lowest-risk companies, free study/analysis, 48-hour approval, 5-day funding, and no early repayment penalties. Includes a specialized track for startups with less than 2 years of activity.
• PME Bonds Bond issuance platform enabling Portuguese SMEs to access the bond market with an 80% BPF (Banco Português de Financiamento) guarantee and financing terms up to 7 years. Raize positioned as a pioneer in creating the Portuguese debt market for SMEs.
• Investir (Investment Platform) P2P lending investment platform enabling retail investors to lend to Portuguese SMEs with projected annual returns of 5.95% and monthly payment distributions. Features a Tracker system for automated portfolio allocation, minimum investment from €20, and a secondary market for liquidity (average sale time less than 1 day for positions under €200).
• Raize Mobile App Free mobile application on iOS and Android enabling investors to manage their investment portfolios and borrowers to monitor their financing and loan activity.
• Insuraize Insurance Distribution Insurance agency service providing life and non-life insurance products to platform borrowers and investors, operated by wholly owned subsidiary Insuraize - Sociedade Unipessoal, Lda. and registered with the Insurance and Pension Funds Supervision Authority (ASF) under number 420563248.

Quantifiable outcome

• 48-hour approval and 5-day funding for SME borrowers
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered notable and core.

• Banco BestnotableGTM or Marketing PartnerAlliance between Raize and Banco Best (a Portuguese bank) where Banco Best makes Raize's collaborative financing solutions available to its existing client base. This enables Banco Best clients to diversify their investment portfolios with alternatives to traditional deposit products, accessing Raize's P2P lending marketplace.
• SIBS (SIBS ESG Platform)notableStrategic or Co-development PartnerRaize integrated with SIBS ESG diagnostic platform, enabling companies to perform free ESG self-assessments. This aligns with Raize's commitment to ESG principles and supports Portuguese SMEs in understanding and improving their sustainability performance. Raize is also a member of SIBS ESG.
• Banco Português de Financiamento (BPF)coreOthersBPF provides an 80% guarantee for Raize's PME Bond issuances, enabling pre-approved bond market access for SMEs. This is a core product feature enabling Raize to offer bond financing with a government-backed guarantee mechanism.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Mintos: Latvia-based pan-European P2P lending marketplace that connects investors with consumer and SME loans across multiple countries. Comparable to Raize as a regulated P2P lending platform, though Mintos operates at significantly larger scale with broader geographic reach.
• Funding Circle: UK-based P2P lending platform focused on SME loans, with operations in the UK, US, Germany, and the Netherlands. Most direct comparison to Raize for SME-focused P2P lending, though much larger scale and publicly traded.
• GoParity: Portuguese P2P lending platform focused on sustainable projects and SMEs. Competes directly with Raize in the Portuguese market with a strong ESG/sustainability focus, similar to Raize's B Corp positioning.
• October (formerly Lendix): France-based P2B (peer-to-business) lending platform serving SMEs across Europe. Similar business model of connecting institutional and retail investors with SME borrowers, with comparable regulatory positioning under EU fintech frameworks.
• Bondora: Estonia-based P2P lending platform operating across Europe with both consumer and SME loans. Comparable to Raize as a regulated European P2P platform with cross-border investor base seeking returns from European credit markets.

Regional players

• Linked Finance: Ireland-based P2P lending platform connecting SMEs with investors. Comparable to Raize in business model and target market (SMEs in a single European country), though focused on Irish market rather than Portugal.

Broad incumbents

• Younited Credit: France-based consumer and SME lending platform operating across multiple European countries. Comparable to Raize as a regulated European lending platform, though with a broader product portfolio including consumer credit and wider geographic reach.
• Millennium BCP: Largest Portuguese commercial bank by assets. Competes with Raize for SME lending but operates at vastly larger scale. Comparison highlights Raize's positioning as a digital alternative to traditional Portuguese banking for SME financing.
• Novo Banco: Major Portuguese commercial bank and one of the traditional SME lenders in the market. Relevant as a benchmark for traditional bank offering against which Raize's digital-first, faster-approval model competes.

Others

• Banco Best: Portuguese digital bank and current distribution partner of Raize. Listed as a peer due to its role as both a channel partner and a potential competitor in the Portuguese digital banking and investment space.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/raizeonline
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/raize
• Instagraminstagram.com/raize.pt

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Raize