Prosper, America's largest people-to-people lending marketplace, today released results for July 2008. For the first time, the survey includes statistics showing how borrowers who list and get funded in the Prosper marketplace indicate how they plan to use their personal loans. Also noteworthy, the percentage of prime borrowers (borrowers with 720+ credit scores) hit an all time high in July, accounting for 47% of funded loans.
Prosper's People-to-People Lending Market Survey results are released the second Tuesday of every month. To register to automatically receive the survey, send an email with "SUBSCRIBE" in the subject line to: p2plendingmarketsurvey@prosper.com.
July 2008 Prosper People-to-People Lending Market Survey
Purpose of Personal Loan Listings and Fundings
Borrowers who post listings in the Prosper marketplace are asked how they intend to use their personal loan. The following reflects borrowers' statements of intended use of loan proceeds with regard to both listings and loans. Prosper does not verify or confirm after funding how loan proceeds are used.
 | July 2008 |  | July 2008 |
Personal Loan for | 50% |  | 43% |
Personal Loan for | 23% |  | 25% |
Personal Loan for | 5% |  | 7% |
Personal Loan for | 5% |  | 3% |
Personal Loan for | 3% |  | 3% |
Personal Loan for | 14% |  | 19% |
 |
Mix of Funded Borrowers | ||||||||||
 |  |  |  |  | ||||||
 |  | July |  | July |  | Year-to-Date |  | Year-to-Date |  | Since |
Prime |  | 47% |  | 32% |  | 42% |  | 29% |  | 34% |
Near Prime |  | 48% |  | 58% |  | 53% |  | 57% |  | 54% |
Sub Prime |  | 5% |  | 10% |  | 5% |  | 14% |  | 12% |
 |
Membership and Loan Volume Statistics | ||||||||||
 |  |  |  |  | ||||||
 |  | July |  | July |  | Year-to-Date |  | Year-to-Date |  | Since |
New Members |  | 22,491 |  | 37,784 |  | 238,527 |  | 240,243 |  | 776,655 |
Funded Loans ($) |  | $8.0 million |  | $6.4 million |  | $54.8 million |  | $49.8 million |  | $163.9 million |
Funded Loans (Units) |  | 1,366 |  | 934 |  | 8,784 |  | 7,131 |  | 26,169 |
Average Loan Size |  | $5,879 |  | $6,870 |  | $6,242 |  | $6,986 |  | $6,261 |
Daily Average Number of Borrower Listings |  | 2,320 |  | 2,789 |  | 2,435 |  | 2,148 |  | 1,748 |
 |
Estimated Annual Return on Prosper Select Index | ||
 | ||
 |  | July 2008 |
Prosper Select Index |  | 7.21% |
Prime Select Index |  | 7.37% |
Near Prime Select Index |  | 7.01% |
Sub Prime Select Index |  | 8.42% |
 |
Average Borrower Rates on Prosper Select Loans | ||||||||||||
 |  |  |  |  |  | |||||||
 |  | July |  | June |  | July |  | Year-to-Date |  | Year-to-Date |  | Since |
Prime Select Loans |  | 10.06% |  | 9.38% |  | 10.29% |  | 9.82% |  | 10.01% |  | 9.96% |
Near Prime Select Loans |  | 16.44% |  | 16.53% |  | 17.08% |  | 16.14% |  | 15.75% |  | 16.13% |
Sub Prime Select Loans |  | n/a |  | 35% |  | 22.13% |  | 27.36% |  | 23.13% |  | 24.21% |
Definitions
Since Inception: November 1, 2005 through July 31, 2008. Prosper's by invitation only "friends and family" launch began on November 1, 2005 and Prosper launched to the general public on February 13, 2006.
2008 Year-to-Date: January 1, 2008 through July 31, 2008.
2007 Year-to-Date: January 1, 2007 through July 31, 2007.
Prosper Select Index: The Prosper Select Index return is the estimated average annual return on principal, based on actual delinquency performance to date. The Prosper Select Index includes AA - E credit grade loans for borrowers whose credit reports at the time of application indicated zero current delinquencies, three or fewer credit inquiries, and a debt-to-income ratio of 40 percent or less. The annual return period reflects loans originated in the twelve month period ending one month prior to the observation date of July 31, 2008. Prime Select includes AA and A credit grade loans (credit scores of 720+). Near Prime Select includes B, C, D credit grade loans (credit scores between 600 and 719). Sub Prime Select includes E credit grade loans (credit scores between 560 and 599).
Average Borrower Rates: Average Borrower Rates are the weighted average borrower rates on Prosper Select Index loans with loan amounts between $5,000 and $10,000. Rates shown are interest rates, not annual percentage rates.
Mix of Funded Borrowers: Prime includes all AA and A credit grade loans (credit scores of 720+). Near Prime includes all B, C, D credit grade loans (credit scores between 600 and 719). Sub Prime includes all E and HR credit grade loans (credit scores below 600).
N/A: Not available; no loans met these criteria.
About Prosper
Prosper, America's largest people-to-people lending marketplace, was created to make consumer lending more financially and socially rewarding for everyone. Prosper's membership consists of over 750,000 people from across the country. Since launching in February 2006, over $160 million in loans have been funded in the marketplace.
The way Prosper works is intuitive to people who have used eBay. Instead of listing and bidding on items, people list and bid on loans using Prosper's online auction platform. People who want to borrow on Prosper create loan listings for up to $25,000 and set the maximum rate they are willing to pay a lender. People who register as Prosper lenders set the minimum interest rate they are willing to earn and bid in increments of $50 to $25,000 on loan listings they select. In addition to criteria commonly used by institutional lenders, such as credit data and histories, Prosper lenders can consider borrowers' personal stories, endorsements from friends, and group affiliations. Once the auction ends, Prosper takes the bids with the lowest rates and combines them into one simple loan to the borrower. Prosper handles all on-going loan administration tasks including loan repayment and collections on behalf of the matched borrowers and lenders.
Prosper was co-founded by Chris Larsen, co-founder of E-LOAN, and John Witchel, technology entrepreneur. Backed by Accel Partners, Benchmark Capital, DAG Ventures, Fidelity Ventures, Meritech Capital, and Omidyar Network, Prosper has raised approximately $40 million. Prosper's marketplace platform is patent pending.