The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has granted Investree Philippines a permanent license to operate as a crowdfunding platform following a review of the company’s operations since the issuance of its provisional license in January 2021.
Investree Philippines is a joint venture between Filinvest Development Corporation and Investree Singapore.
It is the first crowdfunding intermediary and funding portal registered with the SEC after the rules and regulations covering crowdfunding (CF Rules) took effect in July 2019.
The company operates a lending-based crowdfunding platform whose crowdfunding activities involve banks or qualified buyers as lenders, and small, medium, and emerging enterprises (SMEs) as borrowers.
As of December 2021, Investree Philippines’ crowdfunding portal has had a total of 43 issuers and one investor with 110 notes issued, for a total amount of P172.15 million.
The company had three investors during the same period, namely Investree Singapore, Andremere Holding Corporation, and Netbank (a rural bank).
The grant of the permanent license is part of the Commission’s efforts to promote crowdfunding as a suitable investment among Filipino investors and to provide more fundraising options for SMEs.