StreetShares Receives Historic SEC Approval: Military Community Given First Access to New Investment Securities

WASHINGTON, March 15, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- StreetShares, a Washington, D.C.-area small business lender, has become the first lender in the country to be qualified by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to use funds from public investors to back loans to small businesses. StreetShares will use this qualification to scale its small business funding community. StreetShares will initially offer the new securities to American military members, veterans, and their families.

The crowdlending product, created through Regulation A+ of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, offers a fixed return to investors, a first for this type of investment. StreetShares uses the proceeds to generate loans to qualified small businesses. Unlike current "peer-to-peer" lending sites, repayment to investors is not tied to the performance of a particular underlying loan. StreetShares is the first company to apply this law to the $100 billion small business loan market. Until now, only wealthy "accredited investors" could invest in these popular securities.

"This historic approval enables a new social form of small business lending," said StreetShares CEO, Mark L. Rockefeller. "With it, we believe StreetShares can reduce the risk of certain types of loans, making them more affordable for borrowers and lower risk for investors."

StreetShares launched in 2014 with a "veterans funding veterans" lending marketplace for accredited investors. Data from StreetShares' first 350 loans confirmed that a small business loan is less risky when it is backed by investment from members of the borrower's own social group. "Borrowers simply do not want to disappoint other members of their group," explained Rockefeller, "This SEC qualification allows us to now scale these efficiencies to the broader investment market."

StreetShares was co-founded by Rockefeller, a military veteran and attorney, and Mickey Konson, a former senior executive at Capital One.

"New forms of securities do not come along very often. True to our roots, we are excited to offer these new securities first to the veterans and military community," Rockefeller said.

The offering circular and company filings link is available on StreetShares.com and searchable at www.sec.gov.

About StreetShares: StreetShares is America's small business funding community. Borrower Members get fast, affordable loans and support from the backer community. Backer Members earn solid returns and support businesses they believe in. Membership is free. Become a member at StreetShares.com.

Media Contact:
Peter Somerville
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SOURCE StreetShares

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http://www.StreetShares.com