FintekNews is pleased to offer our weekly feature column "3 Questions". Each week, we feature a thought leader within a unique sector of fintech and ask them to answer just 3 questions for our audience in their vernacular. This week we'd like to to introduce you to Ron Suber, President of Prosper Marketplace, America’s first marketplace lending platform, with more than 2 million members and over $8 billion in funded loans.

NAME: Ron Suber TITLE: President COMPANY: Prosper Marketplace WEB ADDRESS: www.prosper.com

What area/s of Fintech do you believe will grow the most in the coming 5 years?

I believe 3 areas of Fintech that will grow the most in the upcoming years include:

  • Money: The old ways we borrowed, lent, paid, saved and invested are rapidly changing with the advent of online marketplaces for credit and new automated payment solutions globally. Good examples include Avdixchange, Stripe and many other groups globally providing solutions for the next generation.
  • Financial inclusion: FinTech will enable all segments of society around the world to get all forms of services without discrimination. Companies like Juvo, Kiva and many others are rapidly enabling inclusive financing communication and education.
  • The elimination of paper: This next generation will not print, sign, fax, FedEx, mail and save paper. You see companies like DocuSign & Eoriginal eliminating the need to sign and ship paper.

How did you personally become involved in FinTech?

I spent 20 years on Wall Street in custody finance and trading. I left in 2006 to explore FinTech, and rapidly learned about the collision of Wall Street, the banking industry and Silicon Valley.

In addition to being interested in the business, I was also an early investor on many of the platforms and saw the opportunity that this new asset class offered to investors like me.

What are the biggest problems facing the FinTech industry in the future?

The FinTech industry is in its third wave. The first wave was when the industry was just getting going, back in 2005-2006. It was small and some people were intrigued, but for the most part, no one really paid much attention. The second wave started around 2015, when we saw significant growth and the big incumbents started to take notice. The third wave is happening now, and is characterized by the incumbents looking more seriously about how they can get involved in this industry-whether going at it alone, or partnering with those in the Fintech Industry. The challenges today include attaining profitability, continuing to attract the best and brightest people, and continuing to partner with other larger companies.

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As President of Prosper Marketplace, Ron Suber is responsible for developing and executing the business development strategy to attract borrowers to the site, as well as ensure a balance between institutional and retail investors on the Prosper platform. He brings more than 20 years experience in sales, marketing and business development across the hedge fund, broker dealer and registered investment advisor industries.