Online lender Prospa delays float 30 minutes to listing

The sharemarket float of online lender Prospa has been postponed about half an hour before the planned listing, after the corporate watchdog wanted further details of its small business loan contracts.

Prospa and its joint lead managers – investment banks UBS and Macquarie – said the 48-hour delay was because it was “seeking to clarify queries raised by ASIC yesterday in relation to Prospa’s small business loan terms,” as part of a wider review.

“Prospa was first contacted yesterday by ASIC in relation to its industry-wide review of small business lending – bank and non-bank. The review covers a range of topics,” a Prospa spokeswoman said.

“We take our legal and regulatory obligations very seriously. We’ve taken a prudent approach to defer the listing for 48 hours so we can engage with the regulator transparently and openly.

An ASIC spokesman confirmed it had been examining unfair contract terms in the industry and this review was “ongoing.”

The delay to the float comes after conditions in small business loan contracts from banks were scrutinised by the royal commission into financial misconduct in its most recent round of hearings.

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