It’s a First! First Circle is a Philippines-founded financing company that focuses on lending to underserved MSMEs. 

• They’ve recently secured a $4.87M credit facility from Taiwan’s Cathay United Bank.

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Some more detail. Cathay United Bank opened its Manila branch in 2015. The partnership with First Circle will boost their regional corporate activity.

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1️⃣ Being the First

First Circle is a Securities and Exchange Commission-regulated financing company, not a bank. 

• They offer unsecured online credit lines and loans of up to $325K to MSMEs in the Philippines. 
• Oh, and the firm has also reportedly extended $260M in loans to over 5K local businesses since its founding in 2016.

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☀️ Scaling lending

The facility will support First Circle’s funding as the Philippines faces growing demand for working capital loans, business loans, and solar financing. 

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Some context. After oil price hikes driven by the situation in the Middle East, more Filipino homeowners are considering switching to solar power to save on energy costs.