You may have some questions if you're a new lender - and rightly so! After all, you're investing some of your own savings and you will want to fully understand the the process of peer-to-peer lending via rebuildingsociety.com.
To get you started, we've collated some of the most common queries from new lenders:
What are the Primary and Secondary Marketplaces?
There are various ways in which you can lend to businesses via the rebuildingsociety.com platform. The Primary Marketplace is where new lending opportunities are listed. These new opportunities are loans that have recently been added to the platform which have been approved for listing following our credit risk assessment.
The Secondary Marketplace features loans that have already been funded by rebuildingsociety.com lenders. As a consequence, they will be at varying stages of maturity. Here, lenders can sell microloans to other lenders. This offers lenders the chance to gain quick access to their cash.
What's a microloan?
A microloan refers to a loan part. All loans are made up of many 'microloans' which have been loaned by individual rebuildingsociety.com lenders to the borrower. Microloans can be traded on the Secondary Marketplace.
Do you offer an ISA?
Yes. You can open an Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) through rebuildingsociety.com. This is a tax wrapper, allowing you to earn tax-free interest on your investments on the platform. You can lend any amount up to the full allowance of £20,000 pa (2022/2023 tax year). Find out more about our ISA.
Can I lend with Euros?
All loans are made in GBP, however you can credit our UK bank account using Wise. There is a small fee, but you are given a better exchange rate than you would get with most banks. When you withdraw your funds, you will need to provide your IBAN (International Bank Account Number) and SWIFT code. We also use Wise to return your funds as Euros into your bank account.
Most credits and withdrawals happen the same day, so there is not much of a delay for the currency conversion. However, please bear in mind that you may suffer from exchange rate fluctuations. This could affect your returns. Also, please note that you are responsible for declaring your interest earnings to your local tax authorities.
Can I cancel a bid?
It is only possible to cancel bids when there is a material change to the auction. For example, this may be when the loan amount requested is amended, or the security offered or auction deadline is changed.
In these situations, an update will be posted in the relevant Loan Updates tab informing lenders of their right to cancel prior bids with the instructions for requesting a bid cancellation and the deadline for requests.
Can I get my money back early?
Yes. If you would like to access your money sooner, you can sell your microloan/s to other lenders on the Secondary Marketplace. Once the microloan is sold, the proceeds will return to your balance. In order to access this cash, you will need to submit a withdraw request from the Dashboard.
It should be noted that the ability to sell your microloan is driven by supply and demand. We cannot guarantee a timeframe in which you will be able to divest. Furthermore, any microloans that are in default cannot be sold.
If you choose to sell microloans individually, you can select and sell microloans at a premium or discount of up to 5%. The advantage of selling at a premium is that you can earn a profit. The advantage of selling at a discount is that you will likely be able to access your money sooner.
Is the repayment amount the same every month?
Yes, if a loan is performing. A varying repayment amount would be inconvenient for both the lender and the borrower. Whilst the total amount you are repaid each month on a loan is the same, the proportion of the capital and interest you receive each month varies, as the loans are amortising.
When a borrower is late repaying, what do I do?
We’ll be the first to know if a business is late in repaying an instalment. As soon as we become aware that a borrower has fallen behind on their payments, we will contact them on your behalf to find out the reasons for missing a repayment. We’ll also find out when we can expect the repayment to come in.
If the business has run into financial difficulty, we will negotiate to find a way by which the balance can be repaid on different terms. In the event that the borrower is not able to repay the loan, you will be given the option to take a repayment holiday which allows the business to pay the interest and not the capital. Should the borrower continue to under-perform, we will get a debt recovery company involved in order to recover the debt. For more information on our debt collection policy and process please see our Terms and Conditions.
Please take the time to read through the other FAQs on our website. There, you can find more information that may just give you the answers you’re looking for! If you would prefer to speak to us directly, that's fine, too. Our friendly team would be happy to help.
Don’t invest unless you’re prepared to lose money. This is a high‑risk investment. You may not be able to access your money easily and are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong. Take 2 minutes to learn more.
