INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Mike Cagney, who was ousted last summer from the lending company he founded, is back with a new startup and a whole lot of funding from at
least one of his previous investors.According to a new report in Bloomberg, Cagney, who earlier this year formed a new lending startup
called Figure, has raised $50 million to grow the company, which plans to use the blockchain to facilitate loan approvals in minutes instead
buy-lease back offerings for retirement.The round was led by DCM Ventures and Ribbit Capital and included participation from Mithril Capital
Management, Cagney confirmed to Bloomberg.Ribbit Capital in Palo Alto, Calif., has been leading investments in the world of fintech and
digital currencies since its founding nearly six years ago
Others of its many bets include the online consumer lending company Affirm, and Point, a startup that buys equity in U.S
homes.Mithril, co-founded by Peter Thiel, prides itself on funding companies that take time to build, with funds that have longer investing
timelines than do most traditional venture vehicles.The cross-border firm DCM Ventures, meanwhile, is perhaps the most interesting
participant in this round
And SoFi has grown by leaps and bounds since its August 2011 launch
Though it initially focused on refinancing student loans, today it provides personal and mortgage loans and wealth management services, and
it appears to be pushing further into other bank-like services.But Cagney was forced out of the company last summer, not long after a sexual
conversations with 30 then-current and former employees, also reported that Cagney himself had raised questions with staff because of his
about anything of the sort happening again at Figure
ostensibly, that Cagney is well-positioned to create another financial services juggernaut
According to Bloomberg, the company has already quietly assembled a team of 56 people
Among its new hires is the former chief risk officer of LendingHome, Cynthia Chen, and the former chief legal counsel of PeerStreet, Sara
