P2P lender Lufax seals $18.5bn valuation after recent funding round

The Chinese peer-to-peer (P2P) lender Lufax has closed a funding round valuing the company at $18.5 billion, The Financial Times reports – in April, the company was valued at $10 billion after raising $500 million. Lufax, who are controlled by Ping An Insurance, raised $1.2 billion in the most recent round, with investors including Bank of China Group Investment, Guotai Junan Securities Hong Kong and a unit of Minsheng Bank. Investor interest in P2P lending in China has increased as traditional bank loans have failed to meet demand.