Please note: the investment side of RateSetter closed on 2nd April 2021.
All money was returned to investors’ Holding accounts from 2 April to 6 April, with no investment release fees applied.
Investing in loans is not new
Banks have always made money by taking deposits from customers and lending that money to borrowers. Banks choose to lend because loans produce strong returns and are considered to be one of the most stable types of investment (often called an "asset class").
The asset class of loans has a track record of being more stable than stocks and shares and other popular investments.
RateSetter loans are uncorrelated with other asset classes
Of course, if you were to invest in a single loan your investment may not turn out to be very stable. Sometimes borrowers miss a payment – it happens.
That's where scale is important. Banks lend to thousands, even millions of people, and this scale helps them to achieve an investment performance that is based on the portfolio average.
Our loan portfolio
Last updated:
January 2021
As with all investments, scale and diversification are important. At RateSetter, your investment is matched with individual borrowers but the stability of your returns is based on the performance of the entire £900 million portfolio, even if you are simply trying us out for £10.
The portfolio itself benefits from the stability of being diversified to include loans to individuals, businesses and property developers. [Note: RateSetter’s portfolio includes loans to other specialist lending businesses – this is now discontinued as a source of new lending.] Learn more
