Today, we bring more news from the febrile, fast-changing world of financial technology. Our friends at Finextra carry the latest tale.
A coalition of UK fintechs has signed an open letter calling on the government to fast track a ‘smart data right’ that enables consumers to control their data, opening up the potential of open finance.
The letter, organised by advocacy group the Coalition for a Digital Economy (Coadec), and signed by a host of challenger banks, data aggregators, personal financial management providers and payment firms, calls for a smart data right to be included in next year’s Queen’s Speech.
The UK led the world in rolling out an open banking regime. Nearly four million Brits have used open banking solutions over the last three years.
However, a report accompanying the letter warns that government intervention is needed in order to move beyond open banking and realise the potential of open finance and prevent the UK from falling behind the likes of Australia and South Korea.
Specific reforms include removing the 90-day authentication requirements currently foisted on users of Open Banking and an element of compulsion for real-time data sharing by incumbents data holders.
The second tranche of the Fleetwood Legal £250,000 loan offering is now 21 per cent filled. The loan offering is rated A with a yield of 8 per cent and a 12-month term. Please note that ‘Fleetwood Legal’ is a code name for commercial reasons.
Money&Co. lenders have been funding legal claims since May 2019. Over that period, and despite the issues that affected the courts at the start of the pandemic, all of the money lent has been returned to our lenders with an average rate of interest of 7.85% before fees.Fleetwood Legal (FL) has an A rating from our credit committee and offers a yield of eight per cent over its one-year term. Below we offer an extract from our credit analysis. Readers wishing to see the full note and to subscribe to this offer must log in (or register if you are a first-time lender).
Historical Performance And IFISA Process Guide
That figure is the result of over £24 million of loans facilitated on the site, as we bring individuals looking for a good return on capital together with carefully vetted small companies seeking funds for growth. Bear in mind that lenders’ capital is at risk. Read warnings on site before committing capital.
All loans on site are eligible to be held in a Money&Co. Innovative Finance Individual Savings Account (IFISA), up to the annual ISA limit of £20,000. Such loans offer lenders tax-free income. Our offering is an Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) that can hold the peer-to-peer (P2P) business loans that Money&Co. facilitates. For the purposes of this article, the terms ISA and IFISA are interchangeable.
So here’s our guide to the process:
The ISA allowance for 2020/21 is unchanged from last tax year at £20,000, allowing a married couple to put £40,000 into a tax-free environment. Over three years, an investment of this scale in two Money&Co. Innovative Finance ISAs would generate £8,400 of income completely free of tax. We’re assuming a 7 per cent return, net of charges and free of tax here.
Once you have made your initial commitment, you might then consider diversifying – buying a spread of loans. To do this, you can go into the “loans for sale” market. All loans bought in this market also qualify for IFISA tax benefits.
Risk: Security, Access, Yield
Do consider not just the return, but the security and the ease of access to your investment. We write regularly about these three key factors. Here’s one of several earlier articles on security, access and yield.