National marketplace lender for SMEs, FOLK2FOLK, has announced it expects to turn a seven-figure profit for its 2020 financial year, surpassing the company's pre-pandemic profit target for 2020.

With an office in Cheltenham, FOLK2FOLK's anticipated profit of around £1m is a significant increase from the pre-tax profit of £198,000 in the previous year, and marks two consecutive years of profit for the company.

Roy Warren, FOLK2FOLK managing director, said: "Platform profitability is of increasing importance to all stakeholders, with investors in particular seeking stable investment vehicles and returns.

"Despite the headwinds presented by COVID-19, we have gone beyond our 2020 profit target which was set well before the outbreak of the pandemic, making it an even more meaningful achievement for us.

"We believe this resulted from keeping our doors open and remaining supportive, for all our borrowers and investors alike. We helped other business stay afloat, and made a profit ourselves by doing so. We take a very human approach and I think that shone through particularly brightly last year and stood us in very good stead."

The firm said the announcement builds on a strong start to the year, after already announcing new additions to its Broker team, a lending milestone of £400M and strong uptake of its Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA). This month, FOLK2FOLK also celebrates its biggest month to date, during which it facilitated £15M of borrowing and investing.

Mr Warren added: "We're excited by the buzz and momentum we're feeling within our business. Our consistent performance enables us to stand tall, and our strong cashflow position enables us to invest in our own future growth."