Speculating on a possible Prosper Re-Launch

I’ve been spinning through the list of FINOVATE participant companies watching for changes and upgrades that are coming out just in time for FINOVATE and I’m excited to see some really cool things coming up. However, this one certainly took me by surprise.

After months of “quiet period” the Prosper.com web site is down for maintenance.

Now, I’m gonna go out on a limb here and project that prosper.com will launch Monday or Tuesday, in time for Finovate. It makes sense. When you compare the Lending Club S-1 documents to the Prosper documents, the timeliness match nicely.

I’m not the only one speculating about the possibility of a Prosper re-launch. Investar on the “Prosper Quiet Diary” forum notes the difference between the normal notice and the current notice and that Prosper’s normal blackouts are just a few hours, not two days. They also normally include the term “routine maintenance” which this notice certainly does not.

Another post from “Investar” says that one of his “notes” has been charged off, when usually the language says “loans.” Semantics or quiet hints?

I guess, in a few days, we shall know. Most of us expected Prosper to resurface after their April 14th filing, but if the SEC required further communication (and note that the SEC recommended “accelerated” communication) another 10-15 days would be a great window.

Also, they’re a registered FINOVATE company. Why bother promoting themselves when there’s nothing to promote? Re-launching for FINOVATE just makes sense.

Jessica Ward is a freelance writer and blogger based in Seattle, Wash. She also blogs about frugal family living at www.pennywisefamily.blogspot.com