Orca launches P2P due diligence platform
PEER-TO-PEER analysis firm Orca has launched a platform for investors to conduct their own due diligence of the industry’s lenders and loans.
Users can now sign up for a free trial to the beta version of the platform, letting them access and compare products, performance, liquidity, financial health, security, default rates and borrower type across a range of P2P firms.
Rather than investors having to monitor each platform individually when they make an investment, the Orca Platform has analysed publicly available loan books and provides real-time interest rates on offer from the main providers representing 90 per cent of the market to save time in researching where to lend money.
Loans can be grouped by consumer, business or property and investors can choose to have diversification set automatically or manually.
The results can then be ordered by categories such as loan term, interest rate or amount lent.
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Users will be able to download analysis and context for Orca’s interpretation and the platform is also working on producing risk scoring for each P2P firm.
Financial advisers using the service can download compliance reports for clients.
“Although P2P investments offer stable, predictable risk-adjusted returns and great diversification for investors, there has been virtually no uptake since financial advisers were permitted to suggest their clients consider P2P products last year,” Iain Niblock, chief executive of Orca, said.
“This is because the risks are often relatively misunderstood, and investors and financial advisers alike do not have the tools and information to feel confident about P2P investments.
“The provision of independent research from a credible source is of critical importance if the P2P market is going to achieve its full potential.
“Our platform therefore aims to provide compliant, credible and robust P2P data and analytics, similarly to what’s available for equity or fixed income investments, to empower investors and financial advisers when opting for P2P.”
The service will be free until September 2017. No further details have been released on charges.
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