Peer-to-peer lending platform Goji announced the launch of the UK’s first diversified peer-to-peer lending bond on Wednesday, allowing investors further access to the fast growing and attractive P2P and direct lending market.
The bond is specifically designed for the intermediary market, enabling advisers and wealth managers to access a portfolio of over 200 different loans from multiple lending partners, providing a high level of diversification.
Platforms in the Bond are selected by Goji’s expert team following robust, risk-based assessments, and reviewed against ongoing performance criteria. The Bond targets returns in excess of 5 percent over a one or three year term.
The Bond is also eligible for inclusion in the Innovative Finance ISA, and since Goji is regulated as an investment and not a lending platform, investors are afforded additional levels of protection, providing greater comfort for advisers and their clients.
Jake Wombwell-Povey, CEO of Goji, said: “Goji’s aim is to combine traditional financial services expertise with innovative technology to open this exciting asset class for new investor markets.
“With the launch of our Diversified P2P Lending Bond, wealth managers can engage clients for the first time with a carefully designed product, with risk management and portfolio construction at its core, that is covered fully by the FOS. The product’s eligibility for inclusion in the new Innovative Finance ISA makes it ideal for investors seeking steady, low-volatility returns in 2017-18.”
Based in London, Goji was founded in February 2015 by professionals with backgrounds in wealth management, banking and technology who wanted to bring the p2p sector to the mainstream. Peer-to-peer lending has seen increasing popularity since the financial crisis, with mainstream lenders falling out of favour with the UK population. In 2015, the value of P2P business lending through platforms reached £1.49 billion.