Consumer confidence fuels appetite for P2P investing
Consumer confidence fuels investor appetite for peer-to-peer lending, new research has shown.
Periods of stagnant income have boosted P2P lending, while rising savings volumes have had the opposite effect, according to Robo.cash.
Analysts at the European P2P lending platform identified correlations between P2P investing and macroeconomic factors.
The research found that in 2019, European incomes were mostly stagnant with a moderate rate of one per cent growth per quarter, but P2P investments grew much faster.
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“Prior to the pandemic, investors in Europe saw P2P platforms as a source of additional earnings to offset near-regressive incomes,” Robo.cash analysts said.
In contrast, at the start of the pandemic, savings levels showed a significant increase, reaching 25 per cent of disposable income, which Robo.cash said “caused a decline in the P2P sector”.
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From the second quarter of 2021, savings volumes started to decrease and P2P investments regained momentum.
Robo.cash analysts also found a correlation between P2P volumes and consumer consumption.
“In 2018-2019, personal consumption has grown, as well as P2P investments,” the analysts said. “With the onset of the pandemic crisis, people reduced their expenditures, which most likely affected the decrease in P2P investments as well.”
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