Funding Circle to get Temasek, Blackrock funding - Sky

LONDON (Reuters) - Singapore's sovereign wealth fund Temasek and money manager BlackRock are set to buy stakes in Funding Circle in deals that could value the British peer-to-peer lending platform at more than $1 billion (674.7 million pounds), Sky News said on Thursday. Temasek plans to invest about 30 million pounds ($44.4 million) and a deal could come in the next few weeks, Sky said, citing unnamed sources. Peer-to-peer (P2P) loans allow investors to lend directly to individuals and businesses, cutting out banks via low-cost online platforms. Funding Circle has lent over 588 million pounds to British businesses. Britain's alternative finance market is forecast to more than double this year to 4.4 billion pounds, according to a 2014 study. Funding Circle declined to comment. Blackrock and Temasek were not immediately available for comment. (Reporting by Freya Berry; editing by David Clarke)