Investing FAQs

No.

FOLK2FOLK welcomes individuals, businesses, and institutions as investors via its platform. To invest, you must be a solely UK tax resident, aged 18 or over, certify as one of the FCA’s approved client categories, and pass our Appropriateness Test.

If a borrower fails to pay interest or to repay the capital, we step in and assess all available recovery strategies to determine the best way forward to deliver good outcomes for our investors.

If an interest payment is late the Investor will not receive their interest and FOLK2FOLK will investigate.  If the loan is deemed to be impaired the monthly interest rate payable to the Investor increases to the full Interest Rate as opposed to the Reduced Interest Rate until all outstanding interest is paid (see our Terms & Conditions for more detail). If a borrower fails to pay interest or to repay the capital, we step in and assess all available recovery strategies to determine the best way forward to deliver good outcomes for our investors.

There are no fees to invest via FOLK2FOLK, you receive the full interest rate stated for each loan investment. However, there is a fixed fee of £250 if you choose to list your investment for sale early via our secondary market. You can view our fees and charges here: Investor costs

Yes. To diversify exposure and reduce risk, Investors may spread their investment over several loans but there is a minimum investment amount of £20,000 per loan.

Your capital investment is due to be returned to you once the loan reaches full term but may be returned sooner if the Borrower chooses to redeem their loan early. If you wish to exit the loan prior to this, you can offer all or part of your investment for sale to other FOLK2FOLK Investors via our secondary market, but there is no guarantee that it will sell in which case you will remain invested in the loan.

In the event that a Borrower redeems their loan early, investors will receive an additional one month’s interest.

The minimum is £20,000 but there is no maximum.

Money is sent to FOLK2FOLK who is required to hold your money in a client money bank account and follow the FCA client money rules.  We will only release the money to the solicitors to release to the Borrower upon completion of the loan and security documentation.

Yes.  You can transfer existing ISA funds (min £20,000, in multiples of £5,000). We’ll provide you with a transfer authority from which you’ll need to complete and then we’ll do the rest. We’ll contact your existing ISA manager to arrange the transfer of your money to ensure it keeps tax-free status.

No. An IFISA is not the same as a Cash ISA. With an IFISA, your money is invested in peer-to-peer loans, so your capital is at risk and returns are not guaranteed. In exchange, you can earn higher, tax-free interest.

An IFISA carries the same risks as any other FOLK2FOLK investment. View Understanding the Risks here: Risk

Yes, a one-off £250 listing fee applies.

If you wish to exit your investment sooner than term you can offer all or part of it for sale to other FOLK2FOLK investors via our Secondary Market. However, there is no guarantee that anyone will buy your loan investment which means you will remain in the loan until the Borrower redeems. Fees and conditions apply.

Yes — if you’re a registered Investor, you can view and purchase listed opportunities via your Portal.

Our Secondary Market gives investors the option to list their investments for sale before the end of the loan term. We can’t guarantee a sale, but historically, investments have sold on average within a day. Sales are always subject to investor demand.

No. While we’ve historically been able to match every seller with a buyer, future sales are not guaranteed.

A £250 one-off listing fee applies whether or not the investment sells.

Yes. You’ll continue receiving interest up to the point your investment is reassigned to another investor.

Yes, if the administrators of your SIPP  approve this.  Not all peer to peer loans are eligible for a SIPP and therefore there may be a delay in finding eligible opportunities.

All investments carry risk and peer to peer lending is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).  We aim to mitigate risk to our Investors by securing the loan against property, and by lending typically up to 60% of the value of that property. We will only put forward and arrange loans which pass our checks, however, we recommend that investors carry out their own due diligence before making their decision. Read more about risk here: Risk

The Borrower’s estate will need to service the loan or otherwise look to repay.  It may result in there being a delay on payments of interest and Investors should be prepared for such delays.  The delays could be caused by the need for the executors of the estate to obtain a grant of probate before being able to operate the Borrower’s bank accounts.

In the event of an Investor’s death, the benefit of the loan will fall into the Investor’s estate and the executors can request FOLK2FOLK to put the loan in the name of the beneficiaries. FOLK2FOLK will be able to do this on the sight of the grant of probate.

Yes. Interest is paid to Investors gross i.e. without the deduction of income tax. All interest received will need to be declared to HMRC on the Investor’s annual (self-assessment) tax return. Tax is not payable on IFISA interest. FOLK2FOLK will send interest statements annually after the end of the financial year.

You can change your contact details via your Investor Portal or advise us via email: customerservices@FOLK2FOLK.com

To make a complaint you can visit one of our offices in person or contact us:
In Writing: Complaints, FOLK2FOLK Limited, Number One, Western Road, Launceston PL15 7FJ or
By Email: complaints@folk2folk.com
By Telephone: ask for Customer Service on 01566 773296
Please ensure you provide your contact details including your telephone number, when you raise your complaint. You can view our full complaints policy here: Complaints policy

Please email enquiries@folk2folk.com to let us know if you have lost your log in details and we will issue new details to you.