Prosper Marketplace President Ron Suber personally invested in San Francisco-based ApplePie Capital's latest round that raised $6 million. ApplePie's financing was led by Signia Venture Partners, with Freestyle Capital and QED Investors participating. QED also backed Prosper and LendUp. When you see some of the most successful people and venture firms stepping up to back ApplePie Capital, it signals that the startup is on to something big.

San Francisco based ApplePie Capital, an internet funding portal that wants to “democratize access to capital and help franchise entrepreneurs achieve their dream” has raised $6 million in a Series A funding round as the stampede to invest in the future of finance continues.  ApplePie also said they had received $28 million in debt capital from both individuals and institutions to fund franchise loans. ApplePie Capital has now raised nearly $10 million in equity capital for its growth and operations. In July, the company raised $3.77 million in a seed round led by Freestyle Capital, with contributions from Signia Venture Partners, QED Investors, and angel investors.

As online lending platforms gain momentum in the financial world, new startup ApplePie Capital Inc. told Venture Capital Dispatch it raised $6 million in Series A funds for its service. It also received $28 million as a pool of debt capital to use for issuing loans.

The San Francisco-based company offers an alternative source of loans for a particular type of small business, franchisees, which represents around $500 billion of U.S. gross domestic product annually.

Borrowers can come to its website and get loans quickly and on good terms, while lenders can find good returns, according to Denise Thomas, ApplePie’s co-founder and chief executive.

ApplePie Capital, which began offering a new, innovative source of franchisee funding earlier this year, has announced three new brands, marking 11 brands now participating in its franchise loan marketplace. The three new brands are Brain Balance Achievement Centers, Brightway Insurance, and Capriotti's Sandwich Shop. ApplePie had previously announced AdvantaClean, Einstein Bros. Bagels, Fast-Fix Jewelry and Watch Repair, Marco's Pizza, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Phenix Salon Suites, RNR Tire Express, and Sola Salon Studios.

The impetus behind the company's formation was to provide a franchise loan marketplace that connects franchisees in need of capital with investors seeking fixed-income returns by investing in operators of proven franchise brands. ApplePie combines the emerging concept of peer-to-peer lending with its own capital from institutional and individual qualified investors. Loan amounts range from $100,000 to $1 million.

ApplePie Capital, a new marketplace lender that specializes in lending to franchises, has officially opened for business.

The San Francisco startup closed its seed round of initial funding in July after raising $3.8 million from venture capital investors such as Freestyle Capital, QED Investors, and Signia Venture Partners. It completed its first loan this week and has secured partnerships with seven franchise chains ranging from salons to jewelry repair to pizza.

"We're completely focused on the franchise industry," co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Denise Thomas said in an interview, adding that franchisees will typically be referred to ApplePie by the parent company.

San Francisco-based ApplePie Capital, a marketplace lender focused on financing franchisees, said Wednesday that it began lending with more than $25 million in loan demand.

The firm also said it's now working with seven franchised brands. Phenix Salon Suites is the latest brand, or franchisor, to join the platform. ApplePie CEO Denise Thomas said the company is negotiating with several other brands that want to work with the marketplace lender, which was established last November.

"The strong demand that we've seen from the franchise industry in just a few months shows that franchise entrepreneurs are in real need of a more efficient alternative to traditional lenders," Thomas said. "We bring unprecedented speed and efficiency to franchise borrowers who for decades have relied on time-consuming, offline processes."

ApplePie Capital is bringing investors to the franchise lending business.

The San Francisco-based startup officially launched this week a marketplace-lending program for franchises. Since its soft launch in November, it has already generated $25 million in loan demand from franchises, including those with restaurants like Einstein Bros. Bagels and Marco’s Pizza.

Marketplace lending is similar to crowdfunding, or crowd lending, in that it gives investors the opportunity to participate in a loan to an organization — in this instance, franchise businesses.

The difference is that marketplace lenders like ApplePie guarantee funding to the franchisee and then give qualified investors the opportunity to participate in those loans.