P2P lending ‘key part of economic recovery’
Peer-to-peer lending can provide a “key part of the economic recovery,” financial industry veteran Justin Urquhart-Stewart has said.
Speaking at the P2P Investing Summit on Thursday, a virtual event hosted by Peer2Peer Finance News and AngelNews, Urquhart-Stewart (pictured) said it is hard to find a decent income at the moment amid stock market volatility and record low interest rates.
Urquhart-Stewart, co-founder of 7IM, said P2P lending and other initiatives are vital to help companies that aren’t suitable for start-up funding.
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“We are seeing a lot of cash being put to one side as people can’t spend as much as they would have done,” he said.
“This is the time that P2P lending and other initiatives need to be put forward to improve the financial plumbing to make sure money is put through to businesses that need it, those that are growing and need capital now.
“It’s the gap where a business is too big to be small and vice versa.”
He said choices for income were limited, leaving investors with the equity market and areas such as P2P lending that don’t have to be as risky.
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Urquhart-Stewart did warn against just investing where there is a tax wrapper available.
The tax wrapper is an enhancement, it’s not the cake, it’s the icing on the cake,” he said.
“Invest in something good that has the benefit of a tax break.”
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