logo
close
Apply Now

Trusted by More than 2,000,000 Canadians since 2016

searchicon Search page

arrdown

About Smarter Loans

Our Mission

Our mission is simple: To make borrowing in Canada safe, fast, and transparent.

We believe that everyone deserves access to fair financial products.

By giving Canadians the tools, education, and access they need, we empower individuals and businesses to find the right financing, from the right lender, at the right time.

Smarter Loans is more than a comparison platform – it’s a trusted financial partner built on transparency, education, and innovation.

What We Offer

What Does Smarter Loans Do?

We make it easy for Canadians to discover, compare, and apply for financing from legitimate and established lenders – all in one place.

Through Smarter Loans, Canadians can:

  • Compare loan types and lenders side-by-side

  • Read verified borrower reviews

  • Access helpful financial guides and calculators

  • Learn about interest rates, eligibility, and loan terms

  • Apply online safely and directly with your chosen lender

Our goal is to simplify the borrowing process so Canadians can make informed, stress-free decisions – whether it’s for personal needs, business growth, or major life goals.

Why Canadians Choose Smarter Loans

  • Trusted Network: We only feature verified, licensed lenders that meet strict transparency and service standards.

  • Comprehensive Options: Access a wide range of loans — from personal to business, mortgage to vehicle financing.

  • Educational Tools: Our articles, videos, and calculators help borrowers understand their choices before applying.

  • Security First: We protect your data with industry-grade encryption and connect you only with legitimate institutions.

  • Nationwide Reach: Available to borrowers in every province and territory in Canada.

With Smarter Loans, Canadians know they’re in the best place to get approved for a loan that truly fits their needs.

Building Canada’s Financial Confidence

Over the years, Smarter Loans has grown into one of Canada’s most trusted fintech resources, featured in national media and recognized for our leadership in financial education and innovation.

From helping first-time borrowers find affordable personal loans to supporting entrepreneurs with business financing, we’re proud to be a platform that Canadians rely on for clarity, trust, and confidence.

Our Values & Vision

  • Transparency: Clear, honest information without hidden agendas.

  • Empowerment: Giving borrowers the knowledge and tools to make informed choices.

  • Innovation: Constantly improving how Canadians discover and secure financing online.

  • Integrity: Partnering only with reputable, compliant lenders who share our commitment to fair lending.

  • Community: Building a supportive financial ecosystem that helps Canadians and businesses thrive.

Our Vision is to create a future where borrowing is empowering, transparent, and accessible for everyone in Canada.

We envision a world where financial confidence is built through education, innovation, and trust – and where every Canadian can find the right loan, faster and smarter.

Our Story

Smarter Loans was founded in 2016 by Rafael Rositsan and Vlad Sherbatov, two Canadian entrepreneurs with a shared vision: to make borrowing in Canada simpler, safer, and more transparent.

After seeing how confusing and risky it was for Canadians to navigate the online lending landscape, they set out to build a platform that could bring clarity and trust to the process. Smarter Loans was born – a centralized hub where Canadians could explore verified lenders, compare loan options, and make confident financial decisions.

What began as a small fintech initiative has grown into Canada’s leading online loan marketplace, trusted by thousands of borrowers and over 50 licensed lenders nationwide.

Over the years, Smarter Loans has played a key role in shaping Canada’s digital lending ecosystem – promoting responsible lending practices, improving borrower education, and helping consumers access financing with confidence.

Milestones & Achievements

  • 2016: Smarter Loans launches as one of Canada’s first loan comparison platforms.

  • 2017–2019: Expands to include business loans, auto financing, and mortgage products.

  • 2020: Recognized as a trusted resource for responsible borrowing during the COVID-19 financial support period.

  • 2021: Surpasses 50 verified lender partners across Canada.

  • 2022: Launches lender recognition badges and customer review programs to improve transparency.

  • 2023: Introduces advanced calculators, tools, and content resources to help Canadians make smarter financial decisions.

  • 2024: Launches proprietary technology, integrating with 30+ leading lenders in Canada via APIs, resulting in best-in-class borrower experience. Establishes as THE go-to place for all loans in Canada.

  • 2025: Strengthens partnerships across the fintech and lending industries, continuing to lead Canada’s digital lending marketplace.

Looking Ahead

Smarter Loans continues to innovate with new tools, educational content, and partnerships that make borrowing easier, faster, and more secure.

As we grow, our focus remains the same: to help Canadians borrow with confidence and connect with trusted lenders they can count on.

Our Team

Vlad Sherbatov

President & Co-Founder

Vlad is the President and co-founder of Smarter Loans. He is a seasoned marketer and has been a leading force behind successful brand launches across many industries. Passionate about helping Canadians access capital easier, Vlad has been instrumental in helping Smarter Loans become a leading loan marketplace in Canada.  At Smarter Loans, we pride ourselves on working only with Canada’s most reputable lending companies, that have proven good business ethics and demonstrate excellent customer service to Canadian residents.

Email: vlad@smarter.loans

Rafael Rositsan

CEO & Co-Founder

An entrepreneur at heart,  Rafael co-founded Smarter Loans with his best friend Vlad in 2016. Both of them spent years helping financial brands with their digital marketing and noticed the industry was full of scams, predatory lenders and non licensed loan providers. They decided to launch Smarter Loans to be a directory of only the most credible and trusted alternative (non-bank) lenders in Canada. The goal with Smarter Loans is to educate Canadian consumers about great financing options available to them.

Email: rafael@smarter.loans

Jenna West 

Writer – Director of Content

Jenna West is the Smarter Loans’ in-house financial writer and content director. She has been covering the Canadian FinTech and finance industry since 2017, including financial trends analysis, industry surveys, regulatory updates and changes in Canadian consumer behaviour when it comes to finance.

Amy Orr

Head Writer & Editor

Amy Orr is a professional writer and editor with over 10 years of experience in the Canadian, U.S. and U.K. financial markets. She has written for numerous publications on topics as diverse as economic literacy, corporate finance, and technical analysis of numerical data. Prior to transitioning to full-time writing, she worked in the hedge fund sector. Her academic background is astrophysics, and she has a Masters in Finance from the University of Edinburgh Business School.

Alex Von

Lead Designer

Alex Von is the lead creative designer for Smarter Loans. Alex overseas the creative content that goes on our social channels, website and beyond. Alex brings decades of design experience and proficiency at any software you can name. He’s an avid art collector for the past 25 years and loves to weave his passion for art into his designs.

David Shaw

Digital Marketing Lead

David has over 18 years experience in website development and digital marketing across a number of sectors with a heavy focus on Financial Services & iGaming businesses.

He helped to develop household name insurance brands in the UK and has managed ad spends in excess of £15m per year for the past six years. He graduated university with a degree in Computing and took a role as an eCommerce Web Developer. Over the past 18 years he has developed over 150 websites – ranked websites at the top of Google in some of the most competitive niches in the world.

Michael Glenn

CTO

Michael is an undercover geek bridging the gap between the suits and the nerds. He is the focal point for product development from conception through to delivery and works with all stakeholders both internally and externally to deliver results at scale. Michael has developed online software for over 20 years since the inception of the web in the areas of academia, corporations, not-for profit organizations and start-ups. He handles anything tech at Smarter Loans and has been instrumental in helping us build proprietary technology to match borrowers with lenders.

Yair Korok

Software Engineer

Yair is the newest member of our team. He is a student athlete at McMaster University on a path to earn his Bachelor of Engineering degree. Yair specializes in Python, CSS, HTML, C#, Coding, Vr, and Design. Winner of numerous coding competitions, Yair brings innovation and a fresh approach to how Smarter Loans plans to grow and continue to improve over the coming years.

Experts, Writers and Contributors

Over 30 professional journalists nation-wide help us research, review and qualify all companies that are featured on Smarter Loans. In addition, these industry experts produce industry research, studies, surveys and other thought leadership material that helps us make the Canadian lending industry a safe, educated and positive environment for everyone involved.  Thought leaders from Canada’s leading companies contribute content to educate Smarter Loans visitors about financial matters.

 

Below are some of our featured contributors.

Sean Cooper

Sean Cooper is the bestselling author of the book, “Burn Your Mortgage: The Simple, Powerful Path to Financial Freedom for Canadians”. He bought his first house when he was only 27 in Toronto and paid off his mortgage in just 3 years by age 30. Sean is a personal finance journalist, money coach and speaker, his articles and blogs have been featured in publications such as the Toronto Star, Globe and Mail, Financial Post and MoneySense.

Ramon Ray

Ramon is an entrepreneur who started four companies and sold two. He’s an author of four books, with the latest being, “Celebrity CEO – How Entrepreneurs can Thrive by Building Community and a Strong Personal Brand”. www.ramonray.com

Jared Lindzon

Jared Lindzon is an experienced journalist, writer and public speaker. He specializes in Business, Technology, Lending and FinTech industries in Canada and abroad. Jared is a regular contributor to Smarter Loans and top tier publications around the World, including Fortune Magazine, Fast Company, the Guardian, Rolling Stone, the Globe and Mail, and many more.

Canadian Lenders Association - Approved Vendor

Canadian Lenders Association

Smarter Loans has been a proud member of the Canadian Lenders Association (CLA) since the 1st year it launched. Smarter Loans is recognized as a CLA Approved Vendor – Best In Class Vendor for Canadian Lenders. The vendors on the list are committed to good business practices and the advancement of fintech  and lending in Canada.

Smarter Loans Exhibited at and Covered the 2022 Canadian Lender Summit:

Smarter Loans In The Press

Hardbacon

 

Smarter Loans Review

Date Published: January 10, 2023

In early 2023 Hardbacon did a full coverage of Smarter Loans, and review of customer experience.

Read the article online. 

Comparewise

 

Smarter Loans Review and Features Walkthrough

Date Published: December 2022

CompareWise compares different financial brands and products in Canada. In this article, they conducted a full review of Smarter Loans features and wrote the following report for their audience.

Read the article online

CardRates.com

 

Smarter Loans Helps Borrowers Make More Informed Decisions Through  Reputable Lending Options.

Date Published: January 30, 2023

CardRates.org interviewed Smarter Loans to gain insight into the Canadian Lending ecosystem, and understand what the best in class borrower experience looks like today.

Read the article online

National Post

 

How Alternative Lending Can Help Fund Your Business

Date Published: December 18, 2019

In December 2019 Smarter Loans was interviewed for an article in the National Post about the rise of alternative lending in Canada, and how its helping small businesses gain access to capital.

Smarter Loans was featured as the go to resource for Canadian business owners to discover financing options from Canada’s top financial companies.

Read the article online

deBanked

 

Canada’s Alternative Financing Market Is Taking Off

Date Published: May 20, 2019

In May 2019, deBanked, a US based magazine published an article covering the Canadian alternative financing sector. In the feature, they’ve interviewed some of the top financial companies in Canada.

Smarter Loans was featured as well as the leading loan comparison service in the country that is pushing the alternative lending industry forward, by educating Canadians about the top financial companies and products available to them.

Read the article online. 

Toronto Star

 

A Virtual GPS to the World of Fintech Lending

Date Published: June 29, 2019

smarter loans toronto star

In June 2019 Toronto Star launched a section titled Future of Fintech, covering the latest innovations, insights and thought leaders in Canadian Fintech.

The article on Smarter Loans is called A Virtual GPS to the World of Fintech Lending, where the author explains how Smarter Loans helps Canadians properly navigate between their options and make smarter financial decisions.

Read the article online

AltFi

 

Comparison Site Smarter Loans Launches in Canada

Date Published: November 14, 2016

Back in 2016, AltFi was one of the first publishers to share the arrival of Smarter Loans with their audience. The article presents an overview of the early version of Smarter Loans and the key features of the website.

Read the article online. 

National Post

 

Demystifying Business Financing in the Digital Age

Date Published: March 21, 2019

In March 2019 National Post ran a special feature for the Canadian franchising community. It included various relevant topics, including financing.

Smarter Loans was featured in the package with an article titled Demystifying Business Financing in the Digital Age, where we explained the most current and innovative business financing options available to Canadian franchisees in Canada.

BadCredit.Org

 

Smarter Loans Marketplace Connects Consumers to Beneficial Loan Products and Financial Education

Date Published: July 9, 2021

On the heels of our 2021 release of the FinTech Lending Study, BadCredit.org interviewed Smarter Loans about the state of the lending industry in Canada and latest trends.

Read the article online

Commitment to Transparency and Responsible Lending

The Smarter Loans Quality Badge is awarded to the select financial companies with an established track record that have consistently demonstrated a commitment to excellent product offerings, customer service, responsible lending practices, transparency and safety for all Canadians.

Smarter Loans is a proud member of:

As seen on
  • logo
  • logo
  • logo
  • logo
  • logo
  • logo