Property Bridges bolsters investor onboarding to comply with EU rules
Irish peer-to-peer lending platform Property Bridges will be asking existing and prospective lenders for more information, as part of additional measures it has taken to comply with the new pan-EU crowdfunding rules.
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“As we implement the new crowdfunding service provider (CSP) rules we will be asking existing
lenders and prospective lenders for more information regarding their personal financial
circumstances.,” Property Bridges said in a blog post on its website.
“It may feel like these questions are intrusive, however the purpose of these questions is to protect
‘non-sophisticated’ lenders.”
Property Bridges said that it now has to simulate an investor’s ability to bear losses which is calculated as 10 per cent of their net worth, based on their income, assets and financial commitments. The firm said it is required to review this information every year.
Furthermore, each time a non-sophisticated investor invests more than €1,000 (£856) or five per cent of their net worth, they will receive a risk warning, the company explained. These investors must then give explicit consent to invest and prove that they understand the risks. However investors shall not be prevented from investing in crowdfunding projects.
Read more: New EU rules “more robust” than UK
Property Bridges funds residential development projects in Ireland and has lent out more than €36m since launching in 2018. It has 6,092 investors, who earn average returns of 7.78 per cent.
In 2021, the company announced that it had secured a €100m funding line from Aros Kapital, allowing it to fund larger projects of between €5m and €12.5m.
The European Crowdfunding Service Provider Regulation (ECSPR) rules were introduced in November 2021, and all nationally licensed crowdfunding and P2P lending platforms must attain an ECSPR licence by November 2023. This licence allows them to operate across the entire trading bloc.
The regulations aim to standardise the way that P2P and crowdfunding platforms operate across the EU.
Read more: Lendermarket platform value hit €29m in 2021
