Media Edge wins £5m UK E-loan
The Media Edge and sister advertising agency Y&R/Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe have scooped the &£5m-plus UK launch account for Rupert Murdoch-backed online mortgage venture E-loan.
The expansion of the US-based mortgage service is being backed by eVentures – the Internet investor owned by News Corporation and Japanese Net investment bank Softbank.
The development follows the announcement that Rainey Kelly is to handle the launch of eVentures’ first UK brand Buy.com (MW November 25).
It is unclear which agencies Media Edge pitched against.
The presentation was made to eVentures chief marketing officer Katie Walker, who also chose PR company Financial Dynamics and market research agency NOP Financial. Walker says: “All the agencies we have on board have impressive credentials, highly talented people and a strong understanding of both the product and market.”
E-loan was launched in the US in 1996 and floated on Nasdaq in June this year. It is the market leader by volume, offering financial products including credit cards and car finance. The UK service, which will initially focus on mortgages, is to be headed by Andrew Armishaw, former chief executive of HSBC telephone bank First Direct.