Social Finance is planning to raise $500m through an initial public offering, taking the online lending platform’s valuation to $3.5bn.
The San Francisco-based online lending platform, also known as SoFi, plans to raise money by filing the prospectus confidentially during the second quarter, according to what sources familiar to the development told Bloomberg.
Sources told the news agency that the company plans to go ahead with its plan to raise the amount in the second half of this year, through the timeline of its plan could change based on market conditions.
The IPO plan follows the company’s $200m raised through a Series D Funding.
In February this year, the peer-to-peer lender raised the funding from Third Point Ventures and affiliates of Third Point as well as Wellington Management Company, Institutional Venture Partners and existing investors.
SoFi said that it will use these funds for the expansion of its consumer lending products throughout the US and build out its marketplace with new options for investors.
The company was formed in 2011 as an alternative to traditional banking offering loans to Stanford University students and graduates.
It claimed to have originated over $1.75bn worth of loans, and expanded to offer a suite of solutions for early stage professionals, including mortgages, MBA loans, and personal loans.
