This month I decided to give an Irish peer-to-peer lending company a try. I had come across Flender a while ago but that was just when I was getting started in P2P investing. At the time, I opted for bigger, better known platforms because I believed they were more established. One thing I like about Flender is the headline on their website for businesses looking for access to funding:
No more waiting weeks or months for your bank to give you the ’slow no’.
Having just gotten a “slow no” from a bank myself (3rd failed mortgage switch attempt) I can appreciate the sentiment there.
Getting Started with Flender
Can I Trust Flender?
It strikes me that Flender seems to know what the psyche of the Irish investor is like after the 2008 crash. They have a built-in focus on transparency. Their FAQ is pretty clear on how they go about business and much more specific than other platforms (without being overly verbose). They grade the investment opportunities and you can also download financial statements from the companies seeking loans. According to Flender, these companies are also checked by Equifax and Stubbs Gazette. (both of those credit checking websites make for interesting reading)
But Something Interesting Happened with my First Investment
I posted before about my interest in investing in more environmentally sound projects. So I was thrilled to read about the investment opportunity in Mulch. However, shortly after I invested my €200 it was returned to me with an email to say that Flender had taken the decision to withdraw. In an email to investors they stated:
You recently invested in one of our campaigns “Mulch”. Due to this deal appearing on one of our competitors platforms, Flender has taking the decision to withdraw our offer and campaign in order to protect our lenders. This is unfortunate however Flender prides itself on transparency and protecting its lenders. Your funds will be withdrawn from this campaign and returned to your Flender account.
In Conclusion
The action they company took in response to one of its clients seeking funding on a competitor’s platform was swift and investors were reasonably well informed. They seem to have taken this action to protect themselves and their investors. At the same time this happened, Flender offered another investment opportunity. Since I signed up I have received notifications about a few different operations with plenty of insight into the companies. I feel like Flender is a secure option in so far as Peer2Peer lending can be considered secure, there is always some risk but informed decisions are easier to make here.
Image Credit: GrandCanal Dock by Giuseppe Milo via Flickr
Start with €50
Get a 10% Return on Your Investment
Do you want to give it a try? If you do click on the button below. This is a referal link so I would get a bonus if you sign up via this link. Let me know if you do so I can thank you personally.
