Goji to offer electronic ISA transfers for IFISAs
GOJI will be able to facilitate electronic ISA transfers for Innovative Finance ISAs (IFISAs) by the end of the tax year.
This will be a boon for peer-to-peer investors, who currently have to endure lengthy administrative processes to transfer existing ISA funds into the IFISA wrapper.
David Genn, Goji’s chief technology officer, told Peer2Peer Finance News that there are two mechanisms currently in place to allow ISA funds to be transferred electronically and IFISAs have been included in these schemes since November 2018.
The direct lending investment manager has applied to join Bacs, which enables cash ISA transfers, and TeX, which facilitates stocks and shares ISA transfers.
Read more: Goji adds five new lenders as IFISA transfers soar
“The way ISAs typically get transferred at the moment involves wet signatures and a lot of paperwork, with the funds released by Bacs or cheque, so the process can take from five to over 40 days,” said Genn.
“These are the kind of problems that need to be solved for the benefit of investors.
“Investors don’t want the management teams of peer-to-peer lending platforms to take time addressing these issues. We’re spending time on it so that the platforms don’t have to.”
Read more: IFISA providers call for tailored HMRC submissions process
The other area that Goji is looking at is inheritance tax, which Genn says is the “missing” tax wrapper.
“People are using EIS and business relief in their inheritance tax planning,” he said. “P2P and direct lending have obvious synergies with that investment goal, as they provide capital returns and are not correlated to the stock market.”
Genn said they are looking to work with another company on an inheritance tax-focused vehicle, calling it “the obvious next step for us”, although he said plans are still in the early stages.
Goji operates both as an investment manager and an investment technology provider, with clients including P2P platforms Landbay and Assetz Capital.
Read more: Goji launches SIPP wrapper for direct lending bonds