Crowdfunding innovations in emerging economies: Risk and credit control in peer-to-peer lending network platforms

摘要

Peer-to-peer (P2P) lending has emerged as a network form of crowdfunding that facilitates the loan originations outside the traditional banking model. In China, the combination of imperfect financial development and Internet technology has led to the widespread growth of a P2P network lending market. Using the theoretical lens of information asymmetry, we identify the key sources of risks facing contemporary Chinese P2P companies. Results from our two regression models reveal several factors that can be used as predictors for risk and financial management, including marriage, income, and house property. Our findings also show that collective inference by non-expert lenders can accurately draw an inference from softonstandard information. The construction of such a predictive system is important for ensuring the good operation of P2P network lending platforms in emerging economies.