Zurich-based start-up helps municipalities to obtain loans.
The Corona crisis is also a liquidity crisis: municipalities, cities and cantons need more money at the moment. Because on the one hand they have to finance the state emergency programmes. And because, on the other hand, they are collecting fewer taxes and fees because the economy is almost at a standstill. The Zurich-based start-up Loanboox offers them support with a digital platform that brokers loans.
Around 400 lenders are listed on Loanboox, including many banks, insurance companies and pension funds. Borrowers are municipalities as well as institutions mainly from the public sector. Among them are about a hundred municipalities in Zurich, such as Regensdorf, Bonstetten or Winterthur.
We have closed a total of CHF 80 million in short-term financing via Loanboox in three transactions since 23.03.2020.
says Martin Pöhland.
The financing needs for the city of Winterthur are higher than usual, he says, because the costs are rising due to the emergency programme, but the income from taxes and fees is low. That’s where Martin Pöhland likes to fall back on Loanboox. Once registered, Loanboox users use the platform contracts, which reduces paperwork and makes the whole process quick and easy for all parties.
Stefan Mühlemann explains that registration gives access to a range of investors in six countries in Europe at the click of a button. With Loanboox, you can also place financing requests from your home office and compare offers at a glance without having to introduce yourself in person everywhere.
You can listen to the contribution on the SRF website.
