How easyMoney has never lost a penny of investors’ money

(Capital at risk - Past performance is not an indicator of future results. Not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Money invested through easyMoney is concentrated in property and could be affected by market conditions. For the same reason, instant access cannot be guaranteed. We do not offer investment or tax advice. Please note that the parameters contained in this blog are are subject to change as our business evolves).

easyMoney, the investment platform from Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou’s easy family of brands has never lost a penny on its loans, more than three years on from its launch.

easyMoney says that its record of having no losses on loans actually stretches back even further. 

Prior to the launch of easyMoney in 2018, it acquired the successful property lending business of Tower Bridging, built up by industry veteran Jason Ferrando. The combined track record of easyMoney and Tower Bridging stretches back 15 years with never a penny of investors’ money lost. Please remember your investment is not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).

Read more: easyMoney became profitable in 2020.

easyMoney’s team has extensive property market experience.

Chief executive Andrew de Candole has previously taken two real estate companies from start-up to public flotation and has over 40 years of real estate development experience. Their top five tips for avoiding defaults on property-backed P2P loans are:

1. Property lending should be done by property professionals – We believe there is no substitute for experience of multiple property cycles and having underwritten a large number of property-backed loans. easyMoney is run by a team with decades of experience in the UK property industry. P2P platforms lending against property development projects run by people who don’t have property development backgrounds may easily miss potential problems.

2. Never lend against illiquid properties – That experience through multiple property cycles has taught us that lending should only be secured against saleable properties. On the residential side, we focus on lending against good-quality affordable homes in places people want to live, preferably not far from large towns and cities. 

3. Lend to experienced property professionals you know – We generally only lend to experienced property professionals with established track records of successful projects and repayments. Many of our loans are recommended to us through ‘word of mouth’ or new loans to professionals who have borrowed from us previously and repaid us in full – often many times. They understand the level of detail we demand in their project plans and have a track record of delivering on time and on budget.

4. Have construction experts on hand – easyMoney will generally never write a property development loan unless our construction and monitoring team, with whom we have worked for many years, have investigated and signed off on every aspect of the build. This includes costings, plans and timetables. Analysis of the ‘saleability’ of designs is important and something that many lenders don’t have the experience to do. Site monitoring visits are always made monthly and drawdowns agreed after a detailed analysis of work undertaken.

5. Put strict limits on LTV – easyMoney currently lends at a maximum of 75% LTV on bridging loans or 70% Loan to Gross Development Value (LTGDV) on development loans. The current average LTV on our bridging loan book is 52.96%, while the average LTGDV of the development loan book is 53.4%. We lend for 12 months on bridging loans and 24 months on development loans.

All valuations are undertaken by RICS valuers with experience in a specific location. We generally get valuations based upon ‘time to sell’ of 90 days and 180 days. In addition, we do our own desk-top valuations as a check.

Andrew de Candole, chief executive of easyMoney, says: “We are happy with of our track record. This has been achieved through bringing decades of property experience".

“It can be difficult for P2P lenders without extensive property industry experience to foresee the potential problems in a project. When you have been through multiple property cycles and developed multiple properties yourself you learn what to avoid.”

About easyMoney

easyMoney is the investment platform from Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou’s ‘easy’ family of brands. easyMoney focuses on making loans to property professionals secured by a legal charge against UK property. easyMoney currently offers a range of target annual interest rates to investors depending on the amount invested.

• A Classic Account offers a target rate of up to 3.08% for a minimum investment of £100
• A Premium Account offers a target rate of up to 4.03% for a minimum investment of £10,000
• A Premium Plus Account offers a target rate of up to 5.02% for a minimum investment of £20,000
• A High Net Worth Account offers a target rate of up to 6.01% for a minimum investment of £100,000
• A Professional Investor Account offers a target rate of 8% and over for a minimum investment of £1,000,000+

High-net-worth and professional investors can opt in to see in-depth information on all loans and can call Jason Ferrando, Head of Lending to discuss individual loans and their portfolio at any time.

As investment levels increase, investors automatically move to higher target rates.

easyMoney is not a cash savings account. You may not get back the full amount you put in. Your capital is at risk if you invest. Peer-to-peer investments are eligible for an Innovative Finance ISA which is not a Cash ISA. They are not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Money invested through easyMoney is concentrated in property and could be affected by market conditions. For the same reason, instant access cannot be guaranteed. We do not offer investment or tax advice.

easyMoney is the trading name of E-money Capital Ltd, a company incorporated in England & Wales. Registered office is 5 Fleet Place, London, England, EC4M 7RD (Company No. 04861007). E-money Capital Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) #231680.