"It's good to be the King". When you're as big as Google, you can ban Adwords leading to payday lenders whilst also investing in a a payday lender. Yes, Google Ventures and Google are separate decision making entities, but they are still under the same umbrella. The good thing is that now LendUp and other short-term lenders will most likely need to re-evaluate their models and what they offer to borrowers.  Whether that includes early-payment penalties or high interest of over 300%. The market definitely needs to shift gears.