Before the opening bell, Laguna Blends, Inc. (CSE: LAG) (OTC: LAGBF) (FRANKFURT: LB6A.F) announced a first tranche closing related to its non-brokered private placement. The first tranche closing included the issuance of 1,627,200 units at a price of $0.25 per unit for gross proceeds of $406,800. Each of these units includes one common share, as well as a purchase warrant entitling the holder to acquire an additional common share of Laguna’s stock at a price of $0.40, valid until August 25, 2017. Securities issued as part of the first tranche will be subject to a hold period expiring four months and one day from the original date of issuance. The Canadian Securities Exchange has granted Laguna an extension for the filing of final material related to the private placement to October 7, 2016. The company expects to close the final tranche on or before this date.

In recent weeks, Laguna has remained focused on expanding the reach of its affiliate marketing network across North America. In addition to its innovative beverage products capitalizing on the nutritional health benefits derived from hemp – including Caffe and Pro369 – the company recently entered an exclusive distribution agreement with ISO International, LLC to market, promote and distribute seven cannabidiol (CBD) skin care products developed by Cannaceuticals of California, USA (“Canna”). Through this agreement, Laguna will look to bolster the marketability of its affiliate marketing network with a line of proven skin care products while gaining access to the global skin care industry, which is estimated at $121 billion.

Laguna’s ongoing growth initiatives are being guided by an experienced management team that was recently expanded to include Bryan Loree as chief financial officer, corporate secretary and director. Through this appointment, which was announced early this month, Loree replaced Stuart Gray, the company’s founder and CEO, who was previously serving as acting CFO, adding roughly 10 years of accounting, finance and management experience to the Laguna team.

For more information, visit www.lagunablends.com

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eXp World Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: EXPI) is offering Americans a 21st century new deal with its Agent-Owned Cloud Brokerage™. Back in the 1930s, Americans were, as they have been in recent times, picking up the pieces after a series of devastating economic events, but if we thought the Great Recession was bad, it’s because most of us haven’t been around long enough to remember the Great Depression. Writing in the Wall Street Journal (http://nnw.fm/Diys5), well-known financial commentator and hedge fund director Roger Lowenstein opined that ‘the world didn’t experience anything close to a global depression during the recent crisis. Peak to trough, global GDP fell 15%, world-wide, from 1929 to 1932; it fell less than 1% from 2008 to 2009.’

As part of recovery efforts back then, President Franklin D. Roosevelt launched his New Deal, under which the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) was created. The FHA was a big deal for housing since it gave rise to the vibrant housing market now estimated by the National Association of Home Builders to contribute about 15 percent of GDP (http://nnw.fm/8GTa4). The FHA set standards for construction and underwriting of mortgage loans. Its most important contribution, however, was its provision of insurance for loans for home building made by banks and other private lenders.

The FHA has become the largest insurer of mortgage loans in the world, insuring over 34 million properties since its inception in 1934. It now falls under the aegis of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. After its creation, home ownership increased. It was 44 percent in post-Depression 1940, but is now 62.9 percent, according to a July 2016 press release from the Census Bureau (http://nnw.fm/0vHQq)… and it keeps rising.

Last week, housing data for July 2016 (http://nnw.fm/oX6sp) released by the Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) showed that ‘private-owned housing starts in July were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,211,000… (which) is 5.6 percent above the July 2015 rate of 1,147,000.’ Private-owned houses completed ‘were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,026,000… 3.2 percent above the July 2015 rate of 994,000.’

eXp World Holdings is offering brokers, agents and prospective home owners a new deal in these still uncertain times. Its Agent-Owned Cloud Brokerage, operated by wholly-owned subsidiary eXp Realty, offers brokers and agents a full service national real estate brokerage platform with all the services offered by a traditional brick-and-mortar brokerage… but without the associated costs. It provides a novel 3-D environment in which agents and brokers can source training, educational, coaching and mentoring resources, as well as transaction and technical support.

An updated research report from Fundamental Research (http://nnw.fm/Nmzm0) issued last week details that ‘Since our previous report in May 2016, the company has expanded its membership count by 31%, from 1,204 to 1,580. The platform only had 665 real estate brokers and agents as members as of June 30, 2015.’

For buyers, things have never been easier. From the comfort of their armchairs, they can find the right agent and, through him or her, the right house. eXp Realty is currently operating in 41 states across the U.S., as well as the District of Columbia and Alberta, Canada. This new deal from eXp World Holdings looks like the real deal.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.eXpWorldHoldings.com

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In a recent news release, Dominovas Energy Corp. (OTCQB: DNRG) announced that it is currently in the process of finalizing plans to deliver its proprietary RUBICON™ solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology to the University of Johannesburg in South Africa. Deployment of the proposed ‘showcase’ unit, which was originally announced in May, will be a first step toward the company’s ultimate goal of delivering its one-of-a-kind, multi-megawatt system to the region.

Dominovas Energy chairman and CEO Neal Allen met with officials from the University of Johannesburg late last week regarding the impending deployment of the company’s demonstration unit. In addition to determining the actual site and deployment strategy for the ‘showcase’ unit, the meetings included discussions regarding the development of a collaborative venture between the University of Johannesburg and Dominovas Energy designed to advance the study of fuel cell technology in the sub-Saharan region of Africa. Establishment of the Institute of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology is expected to provide “a welcome boost to the development of a new research frontier — for the vision of a future clean power supply for South Africa and the whole of Africa,” according to Professor Tien Chien Jen, director of the University of Johannesburg’s manufacturing research center.

To view photos from Allen’s time at the University of Johannesburg, visit http://nnw.fm/YUT2y

“Let there be no doubt, Dominovas Energy is committed 100% to the delivery of its ‘Showcase’ to South Africa,” Dr. Shamiul Islam, executive vice president for fuel cell operations with Dominovas Energy, stated in the news release. “I am excited to see the progress being made as necessary steps are taking place that have set the path for execution and delivery of our system.”

When deployed, Dominovas Energy’s ‘showcase’ unit will be the first SOFC unit to serve baseload capacity anywhere on the African continent. For residents of countries in sub-Saharan Africa, the company’s RUBICON™ technology will likely be a game changer in the years to come. According to a report by the International Energy Agency (http://nnw.fm/NQ6y9), more than 95 percent of the estimated 1.2 billion people who did not have access to electricity in 2013 were living in sub-Saharan Africa and developing Asia.

The RUBICON™ is expected to play a key role in providing access to reliable power generation throughout the region. The fuel-flexible power solution is capable of generating electricity from a wide variety of hydrocarbon fuels, including diesel, natural gas, propane, ethanol, methanol and bio-derived fuels. Additionally, the RUBICON™, as a stand-alone system, helps developing areas minimize the need for expensive grid construction and upkeep. This combined versatility is designed to encourage the use of natural resources instead of inefficient coal plants while greatly expanding global access to electricity.

For more information, visit www.dominovasenergy.com

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A story that really grew legs earlier this year, based on the May report from leading independent strategic market research firm Euromonitor (http://nnw.fm/zJB60), clearly illustrates how China’s massive consumer market has rapidly processed the clean food trend that took years to sweep through Western markets. The shift toward healthier alternatives by a large percentage of fast food and casual dining consumers is likely also related to the accessibility of information that has come with ubiquitous internet access all over the planet. The implications of all this for the industry, however, irrespective of the component architecture of causes, is strikingly unambiguous: serious changes toward healthier menu options have become vital.

Fast food giant McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD), which opened doors in China back in 1987 and has grown to over 2,200 locations, as well as Yum Brands (NYSE: YUM), the operator of KFC and Pizza Hut (7,200 locations), are both shedding Chinese footprint. Yum’s market share alone has declined 17 percent since 2012 (MCD lost around 2.7 percent), resulting in strategic divestment of 20 percent of its overall position to a Chinese company, a vector also being pursued by MCD. Consumers want healthier and heartier meals now. This is perhaps the core driver behind the success of outfits like Panera Bread Company (NASDAQ: PNRA) and Chipotle Mexican Grill (NYSE: CMG), as well as 2015 IPO Shake Shack (NYSE: SHAK), which, while not quite as focused on healthier options, definitely speaks to the same consumer sentiment about real food value.

The time has come to seriously start building a portfolio of promising, investor-accessible fast casual and even fast food companies who understand where the industry is headed and have been able to successfully capitalize on the trends, and not just with lackluster, after-the-fact menu alterations the way MCD has done, a decision which has (unsurprisingly) failed to win over increasingly savvy consumers. It makes sense to look at companies who have flipped the script and started from scratch with a new model, operators who understand not just the underlying trends, but the full spectrum of logistical issues as well. Issues like cultivating brand awareness and an identity early on that will have real staying power, or shrewdly setting up the entire model from the get go to really succeed when it comes to securing optimal locations that are heavily trafficked and/or are geographically localized to premium target demos.

Giggles N’ Hugs (OTCQB: GIGL) is one to watch in this arena, with its unique restaurant concept that fuses together high-end organic food and healthy, cutting-edge play/entertainment for children, a model which has already proven itself by becoming extremely successful in Southern California at some of the high end malls the company brilliantly likes to target for maximum traction – both with the general public and a growing retinue of A-list celebs. This is an extremely important kind of passive celebrity branding that costs GIGL nothing, yet (especially for SoCal folks) resonates hugely with target demos.

Some 15 percent of all ads last year featured high profile celebs (http://nnw.fm/o99xD), and whilst most companies must navigate the choppy waters of picking the right kind of celebrity that parallelizes their brand, secure endorsements via huge payouts, or gift celebrities their products in mere hopes that they will thereby gain attention – GIGL simply has to do what it does best: open the doors every morning to one of the finest organic casual dining, “Gymboree” playspace experiences available anywhere on earth. And it just so happens to be the perfect place for birthday parties, which GIGL does masterfully, with themed and specially catered parties that have live entertainers and actors/staff dressed up as the kid’s favorite cartoon star, comic book super hero, or other, similar thematic constructs.

Fast casual is the sector sweet spot, too, as this entire clean food trend comes to a boil globally, with the segment showing a 10.4 percent sales uptick last year compared to 2014 (http://nnw.fm/A6lpr). Even the largest consumer foodservice market on Earth, China, saw sales grow 9.5 percent year over year to $617 billion. The GIGL story is really something to look at, with tightly-knit partnerships between the company and some of the world’s largest mall operators helping to ensure its longer-term franchise success, as well as a brilliantly executed and highly unique model. By the way, this is a model that can work anywhere on the planet. This versatility is something for investors playing the long game to think about with GIGL, especially considering the baseline receptivity in Asian markets to this kind of family-centric dining concept.

Learn more by visiting www.gigglesnhugs.com

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Even with fuel prices dropping significantly over the last couple of years, which has prompted some industry commentators to predict a slowdown on the electric vehicle market, overall sales reported in the first quarter of 2016 were 42% higher year-on-year (http://nnw.fm/Yp7DU). The Q1 increase is indeed not as high as the figures reported in Q4 2015, which was particularly strong for electric vehicle sales in anticipation of reduced incentives on several markets this year. Nonetheless, plug-in sales in the first quarter totaled an impressive 180,500 units worldwide, with China alone responsible for a considerable portion of the growth, as year-on-year sales in the Asian nation doubled compared to last year.

China remains a significant market for electric vehicles, not only in terms of sales, but also in terms of manufacturing. One of the most revolutionary electric cars on the market at the moment, the e-Go EV sold by 2050 Motors, Inc. (OTCQB: ETFM), is in fact the product of a Chinese company, being engineered and designed by Jiangsu Aoxin New Energy Automobile Co., Ltd. What sets the e-Go EV apart from other electric vehicles is that it is the only such car with a carbon fiber body and parts installed on an aluminum racing car frame and suspension. The entire manufacturing process is done with the help of robotic machines, which lowers both the time and cost of fabrication. The result is an electric car that weighs thousands of pounds less than other similar vehicles on the market, at only 1,450 lbs., and with a carbon fiber body that is five times stronger than steel.

2050 Motors, which has exclusive rights to assemble and distribute the e-Go, says this is the most efficient and affordable electric vehicle ever built, with over three times the battery life of other cars in its class. The vehicle’s battery warranty is eight years with unlimited mileage, the same as Tesla’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) Model S. The company also plans to launch a carbon fiber luxury sedan, the Ibis EV, in the near future.

This might be very soon, as the company recently secured an equity purchase agreement of $10 million for the construction of an assembly plant in Las Vegas. The deal was sealed with Southridge Partners II, LP, a Connecticut-based holding firm specializing in advisory services and direct investment. The facility will be built specifically for the assembly of carbon fiber electric vehicles, including the body and parts being manufactured and shipped from the Jiangsu factory. 2050 Motors is close to completing negotiations with the City of Las Vegas regarding the project, which is expected to bring a great number of high paying jobs to the city.

Additionally, the company is in talks with the Las Vegas Global Economic Alliance for the creation of a foreign trade zone for the assembly factory, which would allow it to bring the car bodies and parts from China without formal customs processing or customs duties until the assembled products leave the trade zone.

For more information, visit www.2050motors.com

Yesterday, Fundamental Research Corp., an independent research firm specializing in the small-cap and microcap sectors, announced the release of an updated analysis on eXp World Holdings, Inc. (OTCQB: EXPI). The new analysis, which includes upward revisions from Fundamental Research Corp.’s original report released in April of this year, highlights EXPI’s strong fiscal performance in the second quarter of 2016, healthy balance sheet and recent independent additions to its board of directors as reasons prospective investors may want to take a second look at the company.

“We are raising our revenue forecast for 2016 from $40.50 million to $48.94 million, and for 2017 from $72.00 million to $82.50 million,” reads the Fundamental Research Corp. report. “We are also raising our long-term forecasts. In our previous models, we had assumed growth to 10,000 members by 2020. We are now extending our models based on the assumption that membership will increase to 15,000 by 2022.”

To view the full report, visit http://nnw.fm/QC5eP

Taking a quick look at EXPI’s progress toward expanding its presence in the North American real estate market in recent months, Fundamental Research Corp.’s decision to revise its previous growth forecasts comes as no surprise. Since the original report in April, EXPI has successfully commenced real estate brokerage operations in seven new states and the District of Columbia. In total, the company’s Agent-Owned Cloud Brokerage® is currently operational in 41 states; Alberta, Canada; and Washington, D.C. Alongside its entry into new jurisdictions, eXp Realty, the real estate brokerage division of EXPI, has had tremendous success in recruiting real estate professionals to its growing family of agents and brokers. In a news release from earlier this month, the company reported more than 1,580 agents across all of its markets, up from just 864 at the beginning of 2016.

The rapid growth of its real estate brokerage division has also spurred strong fiscal results for EXPI in recent months. On August 15, the company released its second quarter results, which included revenues of more than $13.2 million, a year-over-year increase of 137 percent. This coincided with a 111 percent year-over-year increase to eXp Realty’s agent count. EXPI’s cash position was also strengthened during the second quarter, with cash and cash equivalents up 207 percent from June 2015. Glenn Sanford, chairman and chief executive officer of EXPI, summed up these results in a recent news release.

“eXp Realty continues to experience accelerated growth in agent count and in revenues as a result of our commitment to agent ownership, agent support, and agent engagement,” he stated.

For more information, visit the company’s website at www.eXpWorldHoldings.com

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Now that Laguna Blends (CSE: LAG) (OTC: LAGBF) (FRANKFURT: LB6A.F) has signed a distribution agreement with ISO International, LLC to promote and distribute seven CannaCeuticals (“Canna”) cannabidiol (CBD) skin care products, the Canadian-based network marketing company is taking its winning ways into the billion dollar aesthetics industry. Canna is a Swiss brand of skincare products based on cosmeceutical-grade CBD. Under the deal, Laguna Blends will pay a one-time license fee of USD 100,000 and commit to purchasing USD 1.5 million worth of product at wholesale prices over the first two years of the agreement.

The company will harness the extensive reach of its affiliate-marketing network to market the Canna skincare line in the U.S., and, after regulatory approval is obtained, plans to market the line in Canada, Asia, Europe and Mexico.

Clinical trials conducted early last year on CBD7 serum, the active ingredient in the Canna skincare line, yielded positive results. The regenerative microencapsulated time-released therapy ‘blurs the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles in 7 – 14 days’ and ‘significantly improves the texture of skin’, the report, undertaken by BioScreen® Testing Services, Inc., concluded.

The product under test, one ounce Facial Serum CBD, ‘provided the following statistically significant improvements after 14 days of… use’. There was a ‘12.74% improvement in skin texture’; ‘80.95% of subjects demonstrated an improvement in skin texture’; there was a ‘7.40% improvement in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles of the mouth area’; and ‘80.95% of subjects demonstrated an improvement in the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles of the mouth area’. These were encouraging outcomes, which have not gone unnoticed. The widely-circulated May 2016 issue of Elle Magazine, with Beyoncé Knowles on the cover, featured CannaCeuticals CBD7 in its ‘Tips and Trends’ section.

The medical aesthetics market was estimated at $7.5 billion in 2015 by Markets and Markets (http://nnw.fm/9bzjH). Over the next five years, it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.8%, reaching $12.6 billion in 2020. The skincare market is even larger. At the launch of the distribution deal for the Canna line, Laguna’s CEO Stuart Gray observed:

“We are excited to announce the closing of this transaction, which firmly roots Laguna in the $121 billion global skin care industry. The pairing of our rapidly growing affiliate network with a revolutionary and clinically proven product line creates a powerful opportunity of growth and expansion.”

The Canna brand supplements Laguna Blends’ products based on the nutritional health benefits derived from hemp. Laguna Blends is a network marketing company, sometimes referred to as a multi-layer marketing company, which generates retail sales through independent affiliates. In April 2016, the company announced the commencement of beta testing for its Laguna World virtual 3D community with independent affiliates. Laguna World, an interactive platform, will enable affiliates to train, recruit and sell from home and so reduce unproductive hours spent on traveling. Laguna believes this innovative virtual world technology ‘is a game changer in the Direct Selling / Network Marketing Industry.’

Laguna’s flagship product is Caffe Protein Coffee which ‘is loaded in proteins: both whey and hemp.’ Another product is Pro369, which combines HempOmega®, hemp protein and ginseng and comes in four delicious flavors: Vanilla Caramel, Tropical Fruit, Mixed Berry and Chocolate Banana. Earlier this month, the company announced the renewal of the agreement retaining Emmanual Arceneaux, a player in the Canadian Football League, as a brand ambassador for Pro369.

For more information, visit www.lagunablends.com

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Before the opening bell, Monaker Group, Inc. (OTCQB: MKGI) announced completion of the design, architecture and buildout of its Application Program Interface (“API”) and the corresponding launch of its Monaker Booking Engine (“MBE”). This announcement marks a key milestone in the company’s efforts to develop a sustainable foothold in the rapidly growing alternative lodging space, as the completed API and MBE will allow Monaker to work toward partnering with large, established online travel agencies, tour operators, airlines and cruise originators to offer its sizable inventory in a real-time booking format. This real-time booking format is key to the company’s future growth, as the vast majority of alternative lodging firms still rely on the less convenient request/response approach to booking, which slows down the rental process.

“The completion of the MBE and API is an important milestone for the Company and our large inventory can now be distributed to our interested partners in the Alternative Lodging industry,” Bill Kerby, chairman and chief executive officer of Monaker, stated in this morning’s news release. “I’m very pleased with the functionality of the MBE and initial discussions with potential partners has suggested their desire to find a true ‘Plug and Play’ solution. We believe we can now uniquely provide this for the growing travel space.”

With the launch of the MBE, Monaker will look to add several large travel industry partners in the coming months. These partnerships will play a key role in the company’s efforts to expand distribution for its growing inventory of alternative lodging rental units. In a shareholder update issued in early June, Monaker reported an impressive 1.1 million alternative lodging rental units under contract and outlined plans to add more than 200,000 additional timeshare or resort units to its NextTrip Resorts platform by the end of this year.

Monaker has remained committed to developing a better approach to the alternative lodging space. Just last week, the company announced the launch of a premium service for its property owners. Leaning on its deep expertise in inventory acquisition, reservations services, technology and distribution, Monaker suggests that property owners who take advantage of its premium service could see an increase of nearly 50 percent in booking revenues while reducing the time required to manage their properties by 10 hours per week. Additionally, leveraging the company’s proprietary platform architecture and partnerships, premium service listings are positioned on up to 50 major global booking platforms in multiple languages worldwide.

With the completion of its API and MBE and the recent launch of its premium service for property owners, Monaker is differentiating itself in the global vacation rental market, which is expected to reach $169.7 billion by 2019, according to Research and Markets. Kerby reiterated management’s optimism regarding the company’s short-term growth prospects to close out this morning’s news release.

“Our goal of becoming one of the larger players in the Alternative Lodging Rental industry can now occur rapidly and we should be adding several large travel industry partners in the near future,” he concluded.

For more information, visit www.MonakerGroup.com

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Thanks to Business Insider (http://nnw.fm/HHE8i), we now know where U.S. travelers went for holidays this summer. It may have been the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which ended on August 21. Although a scoop in USA Today (http://nnw.fm/sRW9w) claims that just 100,000 Americans attended the Games, down from the anticipated 200,000, stemming from fears of contracting the Zika virus. Well aware of these concerns, Brazil scrapped visa requirements for those holding American passports. From June 1 to September 18, Americans are able to save the hassle and the $160 fee to enjoy a samba summer. The Games may be over, but for a post-Olympic trip to Brazil or some other exotic destination, the adventurer can visit NextTrip, the online alternative lodging and travel platform from Monaker Group, Inc. (OTCQB: MKGI).

The Business Insider feature identifies the usual suspects. At number 10 is Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Mexico, which holds two places on the list, has been a perennial favorite for many years. A Pew Research survey in 2007 discovered that Mexico was the most popular vacation getaway for Americans, with an estimated 5.8 million holidaymakers traveling there each year. The city of love, Paris, is number nine, followed by Destin, Florida, at number eight. Located on Florida’s Emerald Coast on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, Destin has developed from a fishing village into a popular tourist destination because of its many beautiful beaches.

At number seven on Business Insider’s list is the city whose streets, Dick Whittington thought, were paved with gold. Whittington journeyed to London with his cat and later became Lord Mayor of the city. There are no extant records of how his cat fared.

The Big Apple (New York City) comes in at number six, while Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is at number five. Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic takes fourth place. Punta Cana is at the easternmost tip of Hispaniola, the island that the Dominican Republic shares with Haiti. Its 20 miles of beaches with clear water form the Dominican Republic’s La Costa del Coco (Coconut Coast).

Orlando, Florida, is third. Cancun, Mexico, is at number two. Finally, first place goes to Las Vegas, Nevada, known to be the city where ‘What Happens Here Stays Here’.

Now, through Monaker’s comprehensive booking platform, NextTrip, the traveler looking for that extraordinary experience can visit any or all of these colorful locales. However, NextTrip won’t just get him or her there. Through it, travelers can book a hotel room or inhabit what CEO Bill Kerby has described as ‘the hottest space in travel… alternative lodging’. Alternative lodging rentals (ALRs) are whole unit vacation homes or timeshare resort units that are fully furnished, privately owned residential properties, including houses, condominiums, villas and cabins, that property owners and managers rent to the public on a nightly, weekly or monthly basis. ALR listings have multiplied in recent times, with an astonishing diversity that illustrates the economic potential of the space.

A feature in USA Today (http://nnw.fm/AZm9a) tells the story of the most popular alternative lodgings based on images that users of Pinterest have uploaded. The top five list includes a two-bedroom loft in Rome, Italy. There is, also, a one-bedroom house in Beach Lake, Pennsylvania, and a two-bedroom rental in Tokyo. Then, there is a two-bedroom house in Tepoztlán, Mexico, and a charming one-bedroom Airstream trailer in Wimberley, Texas, all of which promise to be more singular than staying in a characterless hotel room.

For more information, visit www.MonakerGroup.com

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IEG Holdings Corp. (OTCQX: IEGH) is a provider of unsecured consumer loans in 17 U.S. states through its state licensed operating subsidiary, Investment Evolution Corporation, under the consumer brand ‘Mr. Amazing Loans’. In recent months, IEGH has successfully leveraged the increasing marketability of its consumer brand to promote tremendous growth, achieving a record high in monthly loan volume of $1.13 million in May before announcing a record high in daily loan volume of $150,000 in early June. In July, the company built on this progress, surpassing $13 million in cumulative loan volume. This milestone marked an increase of 140 percent from January 2015, which IEGH’s management attributed to growing recognition of the ‘Mr. Amazing Loans’ brand, low cost lead sources and continued state license expansion.

After announcing second quarter fiscal results that included a 19 percent year-over-year increase in revenue to a record high of $535,356, IEGH gave prospective shareholders some additional insight into the company’s growth strategy for the coming months. IEGH’s management team aims to expand the ‘Mr. Amazing Loans’ brand into 25 U.S. states during 2016, bringing total nationwide coverage to approximately 240 million people, or about 75 percent of the population. To strengthen its cash position ahead of this growth initiative, the company is currently in the midst of a $95.32 million rights offering to its shareholders of record, with plans to use the proceeds stemming from the offering to fund new loan originations and general corporate expenditures. The subscription period related to this offering is underway and set to end on August 29.

Looking ahead, IEGH’s management team expects loan volumes to continue to rise as a result of tightening regulations on the P2P lending sector. Paul Mathieson, chief executive officer of IEGH, reaffirmed this outlook in a recent news release.

“Management believes the substantially increased regulatory and financing scrutiny on the P2P lending sector is a significant positive going forward for the Mr. Amazing Loans business,” he stated. “IEGH is not a P2P lender, however, we expect some of the P2P players will implode, leading to less overall consumer loan provider competition. We anticipate that this will result in cheaper customer acquisition costs for online, state regulated, balance sheet lenders with strong underwriting standards such as IEGH.”

In June 2016, the New York Department of Financial Services issued warning letters to 28 P2P lending agencies as part of an ongoing investigation into the potential adoption of additional regulation measures. The correspondence demanded ‘immediate compliance’ with the state’s licensing requirements for debt collection, transmitting money and mortgage lending activity. This investigation follows a 2008 decision by the Securities and Exchange Commission that required P2P lenders to register their offerings as securities, pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933. The result was the introduction of an arduous registration process to the P2P sector that led a number of lenders to exit the U.S. market. Notably, New York is one of the eight states being targeted by IEGH for expansion in 2016.

For more information, visit www.InvestmentEvolution.com