Leading peer-to-peer business lender Assetz Capital has announced that over £50 million has been invested into its Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) since its launch at the beginning of the year.
The popularity of the Assetz Capital ISA has been consistently strong, to the extent that ISA investments now account for over 15% of all loans funded through the platform.
Many investors have made the switch to the Assetz Capital ISA from Cash and Stocks and Shares ISAs, with the platform seeing over £20 million of completed or in-progress transfers. This is on top of investors putting new money into their ISAs – in contrast to rapidly falling new Cash ISA investments*.
Users are choosing to make the most of their tax-free ISA allowance too, with the current average ISA balance standing at over £18,000, way above the industry average of £8,500 per IFISA**.
All accounts can be ISA-wrapped, with target rates starting from 4.1% per annum in the Quick Access Account (access times not guaranteed).
Stuart Law, CEO at Assetz Capital said: “This is an encouraging milestone to hit so early. It clearly demonstrates the untapped investor demand for a proper alternative to both Cash and Stocks and Shares ISAs that balances healthy returns with a degree of risk. We believe our average balance is twice the industry average due to our track record as a leader in the industry and the fact we now take property security on each and every loan.
“Our approach was to put the investor at the heart of our ISA product. We made the decision to provide an ISA wrapper on all of our accounts – whether the quick and simple Access Accounts or the Manual Lending Account for people who like to pick their own investments – and this has been very well received.
“The IFISA was always going to be a brilliant opportunity for the peer-to-peer industry to reach a wider audience and it was an inspired decision by the Government to introduce this new third type of ISA. It is up to the individual platforms to deliver ISA products that are intuitive, transparent and fair. We will continue to develop our offering based on these principles.
“We will play our part in proving the Government made the right decision when they sought to create an alternative to Cash ISAs and Stocks and Shares ISAs, with a different risk profile. There is a third way and it is called peer-to-peer lending.
“This is the democratisation of finance, helping to fund the growth of the country’s economy.”
