South Korea’s peer-to-peer lender Tera Funding said on March 20 that its employee strength has crossed the 100 mark. 

“The milestone is significant in fintech industry in terms of a fintech startup’s capability to create jobs,” it said in a statement.

It is the first P2P company to reach the milestone and only few fintech startups including crowdfunding platform Wadiz and mobile money transfer app Toss operator Viva Republica have reached the mark.

Of its 107 employees, nearly 60 percent joined the company in 2018, according to the firm, adding that it has contributed to the government’s efforts to create new jobs.

Founded in 2014 by former banker and foreclosure freelancer Yang Tae-young, Tera Funding has been dedicated to construction loans for projects to build small residential flats at 12 percent annual interest. Buyers of the debt are expected to take the corresponding amount of returns.

Its workforce consists of loan officers that check a borrower’s credit and a collateral, developers of the online matchmaking platform, managers at a construction sites and construction consultants.

By Son Ji-hyoung (consnow@heraldcorp.com)