Robocash, the Croatian-based investment platform, has identified the Baltic states to be a hot spot for peer-to-peer (P2P) lending. Forty-three per cent of the 49 platforms examined are based in the region following the high demand of “Eastern” projects which required Western European investor funds.
The platforms are spread out across 18 countries over a variety of different segments. These include consumer, business and real estate. Analysts from Robocash noted the importance the UK market has had in influencing the growth in the Baltic region in 2016.
The research found that the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands roughly had an 8.2 per cent share across all the platforms analysed. The analysts commented: “The UK was the ‘pioneer’ of the European P2P market, which explains its high share. But the Baltic platforms with their liberal regulation have gradually displaced the UK from the leadership pedestal.
“Platforms in the Netherlands also faced regulatory hurdles in the early stages of development, but the market is gaining popularity among P2P investors”.
In terms of stability and the development rate, Latvia and Estonia are also leaders. “On average, the platforms of these countries need 3.5 years to achieve key indicators and at the same time their monthly values are characterised by low fluctuations.” – the experts explain the statistics. Following the top three is Bulgaria, which has recently demonstrated increased market growth rates in many directions.
It is worth noting that France performs best in terms of stable growth figures. Although, P2P platforms here need more time to reach key milestones. According to last year’s research, Croatian companies are showing steady development, most likely due to the loyal national legislation. But in terms of volume, they still have a small share of the market.
