May 2022: Write-offs.. Again..

Fortunately, the last time I had to write off platforms was more than 2 years ago, but this month it’s that time again. And that is quite a financially painful thing. This suddenly makes the difference between my Eastern European platforms and my set of Western European P2P platforms a lot bigger.

In short, I took the step this month to write off Grupeer and Fast Invest. I try to give the best possible picture of the value development of my portfolio, and then it is unrealistic to leave investments that are (very likely) lost in the books. Maybe money will come back, but I think the chance is quite small. If that is the case, I will of course include it in my overviews.

The profit of my “Eastern Europe group” has completely evaporated and even is slightly negative. The comparatively small group of platforms in Western Europe are holding their own bravely and have almost made up for that loss. It does show that I did well to focus more on licensed platforms and platforms based in Western Europe.

If I started investing now, I would only use platforms that are regulated and licensed. This does not offer 100% security, but there are so many rules regarding transparency, securing investor funds, accountability and reporting to the financial authorities, etc. that I find it a reasonable indicator of the reliability and suitability of platforms.

When I started a few years ago, the market was not quite that ‘mature’ yet, but there were already a few platforms with a license or license from the financial authorities. To see what my returns could have been if I had only invested in regulated platforms, I created a separate category with all the regulated platforms in my portfolio. As a result, I was able to make an overview and graphs, and the return gives this picture:

As you can see that would have been a much better choice, a return that fluctuates around 8% is really great. But it is easy to say that looking back with today’s knowledge.

There are already quite a few crowdlending platforms with a license, and due to tighter supervision and a lot of rules, they (in-)directly provide better protection for investors. Now, for the first time a crowdfunding platform has been licensed, you can read further on which one that is.

Portfolio overview May 2022

Last month my portfolio decreased by € -11,301.99 because of the write-off but my average rate of return over all platforms is still a very nice 11.9%. The table below shows the details for each category.

Passive income per month

The extreme highs and lows on the stock market prevent me from adequately determine the passive income that my investments can generate when I stop working. That is why I now calculate the 6-month moving average of my passive income. Because of this 6-month average the write-off is not really visible, but that will start to show in the next months.

You can find my definition of passive income on my portfolio page.

Activities

To show you how little effort is involved when investing via crowdfunding and crowdlending I have added an overview of the manual actions in the last month:

I did check the platforms every now and then, but this was purely for fun. It wasn’t necessary to get these interest payments and return rates.

Crowdlending

I have grouped by P2P platforms into two groups, one containing all platforms based in Western Europe and one containing all platforms based in Eastern Europe. In the table below you can see the balance between them.

Crowdlending (west)

In the table and paragraphs below you can see which platforms make up my “Western Europe group”.

 Flender

The auto-invest at Flender invests 2 or 3 times a month, while I receive an email about 1 or 2 times a month that a loan has been successfully repaid in full. My portfolio is therefore increasingly diversified here. Last month a few hundred euros were still uninvested, now practically all of that has been reinvested. Long live the auto-invest.

This platform does not have a buyback guarantee, but such a guarantee does not say everything. What they do do is intensively try to get loans repaid or else put real effort in reclaiming the money. As you can see below, a small amount of loans has been written off, but despite this a nice return is realized.

My investments at Flender returned € 17.14 last month, and my average return rate is now 6.0%.

 Funding Circle NL

The two remaining projects on Funding Circle NL continue to pay interest and principal nicely, and my returns are still fine here. It’s just a shame that you can no longer come here as a private investor. Interest and principal is deposited directly into my bank account every month, which is why the interest is steadily decreasing every month.

My investments at Funding Circle NL returned € 4.33 last month, and my average return rate is now 8.7%.

 Lender & Spender

Lender & Spender remains one of the most stable platforms, it is a big advantage that it is a completely Dutch platform. It is licensed by the Dutch financial authority AFM and provides loans to Dutch consumers, and we are so well off in our country that the overall creditworthiness is high. In addition, your money is automatically spread over so many different loans that it is almost bizarre. You could call it bizarrely safe, because an incorrect loan then has very little influence on your result. And besides, it just feels very familiar, a platform that operates so close to home. If I could only choose 1 platform to invest without looking back, it would be this one.

My investments at Lender & Spender returned € 37.25 last month, and my average return rate is now 4.0%.

 Max Crowdfund

At Max Crowdfund I was able to invest in two new projects at the beginning of the month, a German and an English project. About three weeks later, however, an email arrived that the loan had been canceled because it did not meet the minimum amount. But because there are now a few projects published per month, I can probably invest it again quickly.

At least, that also depends a bit on whether they solve their IT problems quickly. Due to some problems incoming payments are not visible on the accounts, and an attempt to manually restore this did not go well either. Fortunately, all loans here are secured by the mortgages on the relevant properties, and the platform is supervised by the AFM. So I’m confident it will be okay soon, but it’s pretty clumsy. In the coming days I will keep an eye on the platform to see if the payments are flowing in again.

My investments at Max Crowdfund returned € 4.29 last month, and my average return rate is now 4.8%.

Crowdlending (east)

In the table and paragraphs below you can see which platforms make up my “Eastern Europe group”.

 Bondora

Bondora has released the annual financial figures for 2021, and they have reached 5 milestones. 2021 was the fifth profitable year in a row, with a net profit of 6.7 million euros on a turnover of 30 million euros. Loans amounting to 141 million euros were provided, which were financed by 185,000 active investors.

If you read it all like this you can hardly conclude otherwise that it is financially healthy. Because the average return has remained stable at 7.4% in recent months, the return of Go&Grow will most likely remain 6.75%. And because you can basically withdraw your money at any time, Go&Grow is a great investment option. The liquidity resembles that of a savings account, the return on other forms of investing. But of course is is still a form of investment, and it is not risk free.

My investments at Bondora returned € 20.49 last month, and my average return rate is now 6.8%.

 Brickstarter

My interest received at Brickstarter has now risen to almost 40 euros, so it will take a while before I reach the minimum investment amount of 50 euros. An average of 1 project per month becomes available, so I’ll have to wait and see when I can invest again. You can only invest manually, but if you do not invest large amounts, it will also take a while before the interest and profits received can be reinvested. So you don’t have to deal with it daily or weekly.

My investments at Brickstarter returned € 7.72 last month, and my average return rate is now 4.8%.

 Bulkestate

The free amount at Bulkestate has risen to 215 euros, so next week I will withdraw 200 euros. My account value here is a lot higher than my limit at almost 3300 euros. In order to limit my risks and spread it a bit more, I do not want to have more than 2500 euros outstanding on platforms from Eastern Europe or platforms without a license.

Last month my account value at Bulkestate did not change, and my average return rate is now 4.7%.

 Crowdestate

The same applies to Crowdestate, here I will withdraw 250 euros. Then the value is about 2900 euros, a lot closer to my own limit. Not every investor should diversify this extreme, but every investor should think about spreading risk.

Last month my account value at Crowdestate did not change, and my average return rate is now 8.4%.

 Crowdestor

Crowdestor now also offers consumer loans, in collaboration with the Spanish lender Simpleros.

The minimum investment amount is 10 euros and there is a 60-day buyback guarantee, if this is stated with the loan (the lender buys back the loan if it is 60 days behind in payments including accrued interest). Definitely something to keep in mind if you want to invest in this.

Because I had 100 euros available, I invested it manually in consumer loans to see how this platform handles it, the auto-invest here does not yet work on consumer loans. Investing is super simple, you just have to click on the yellow button and confirm. Of course you can adjust the amount and first view the details of the loan.

My investments at Crowdestor returned € 5.44 last month, and my average return rate is now 13.1%.

 EstateGuru

EstateGuru‘s campaign on the crowdfunding platform Seedrs was successful: more than three times more was invested than the original goal of €500,000. The campaign (link) is of the ‘convertible’ type, which means that your investment will not be converted into shares until the next investment round. However, you will receive a 20% discount.

The free amount here has now increased to 530 euros, so next month I will withdraw 500 euros and then turn the auto-invest back on. It’s not that I’m dissatisfied with this platform, certainly not, but this allows me to bring my account here below my self-imposed limit of max 2,500 euros per Eastern European platform.

My investments at EstateGuru returned € 29.61 last month, and my average return rate is now 9.7%.

 Fast Invest

This month I (finally) took the step to write off Fast Invest. You cannot withdraw money, not even money that is indicated as freely available on your dashboard. For a while I was still a bit hopeful that it could still be okay, but it has been taking so long that I take the step anyway. Of course I will adjust it again if they suddenly start paying out, but I have a hard head in it.

Last month my account value at Fast Invest decreased by € 3,035.33, and my average return rate is now -100.0%.

 Grupeer

I took the same step for Grupeer. I have now also ‘officially’ written off this platform. Painful of course, but I don’t really expect to see anything of this money back. And one day I have to administer the financial blow.

Last month my account value at Grupeer decreased by € 8,567.00, and my average return rate is now -100.0%.

 Inrento

EvoEstate was merged into Inrento in March, and as of this update, I’ve also made that change on my blog. It is still a bit of a transitional situation, because existing investments can still be found on the EvoEstate, while new investments are only possible via the Inrento website. However, all incoming repayments and interest payments are automatically transferred from your EvoEstate account to your Inrento account. at Inrento my open balance is now about 122 euros, so soon I can make my first investment here.

As an EvoEstate investor you will receive a cashback discount for the first three years. In 2022 you will receive 1.5%, in 2023 the cashback will be 1% and in 2024 you will receive 0.5% of your investments in your Inrento account.

Coincidentally, I saw an email yesterday from Inrento, with the message that the website was difficult to reach due to large crowds. A new project had just been published and many investors immediately visited the website. Of course I immediately contributed to that crowds, to see if I could quickly make my first investment here. And luckily that was no problem.

My investments at Inrento returned € 3.65 last month, and my average return rate is now 6.0%.

 Iuvo

Last month my account value at Iuvo did not change, and my average return rate is now 6.9%.

 Mintos

At Mintos you can now invest in Notes, unlike Claims these are regulated investments. In June you can still invest in both claims and notes, but from 1 July only in notes. This is good news for investors because because notes are regulated, your investments then fall under the investor protection scheme of a maximum of 20,000 euros.

Mintos now has some attractive cashback promotions running. You will then be refunded a percentage of the value of your investment as a bonus. There are a few conditions, but if you reinvest such a bonus again, you can achieve a very nice return.

My investments at Mintos returned € 158.76 last month, and my average return rate is now 9.8%.

 NEO Finance

NEO Finance has increased the limit for their own “skin in the game”. Until now, the company/platform has invested up to 50% of the loan itself, but given the growing number of loans the other half is increasingly being fulfilled slower by the investors. If a loan is not fully financed within 2 days, NEO Finance can decide to finance up to 80% by itself.

I myself only see this as an advantage, because it also benefits the platform itself to publishing good loans and actively chasing defaulters if necessary. And because they wait two days the auto-invest has long had the opportunity to invest in those loans if possible, so it’s a win-win situation.

My investments at NEO Finance returned € 11.91 last month, and my average return rate is now 3.9%.

 PeerBerry

From time to time PeerBerry reports that some of the war-affected loans are being repaid. Sometimes there are a few weeks between repayments and sometimes something comes in every week, but so far about a third of the war-affected loans have been repaid.

PeerBerry has expanded their public statistics page to include repayment data from war-affected lenders. For example, you can see per group and per individual lender which amounts are not yet covered.

My investments at PeerBerry returned € 7.74 last month, and my average return rate is now 10.0%.

 Reinvest24

Reinvest24 has been around for 4 years now, and by their own admission they have been one of the fastest growing platforms in the past year.

Last year the number of investors increased by 76%, and in 2016 there were more investments made. That’s what I call a big growth.

This month the project “Montesano residential complex – 5 houses” has been sold, and I have received the investment plus the profit. In May last year I invested 121 euros in this, and in addition to this investment I also received a profit of € 17.64. As a result, my return has jumped from 6.3% to 6.6%, so not bad.

My investments at Reinvest24 returned € 34.80 last month, and my average return rate is now 6.6%.

 Robocash

Robocash has released the audited numbers for 2021, and they are looking quite good. The entire group is making an increasing and solid profit.

The platform has attracted more than 3,000 investors since the beginning of this year, and the total is now over 25,000. In the first quarter the group was able to limit the impact of the war, even exceeding planned results by 332%.

My investments at Robocash returned € 14.99 last month, and my average return rate is now 12.6%.

 TFG Crowd

At TFG Crowd I only see red flags, so I would stay away from here. Fortunately, I’ve already withdrawn more than I deposited here, so I’m going to keep this platform in my portfolio.

Last month my account value at TFG Crowd did not change, and my average return rate is now 12.7%.

 TWINO

The TWINO platform has been in existence for 6 years (the group has been providing loans since 2009), and it has reached a major milestone: 1 billion euros in loans have been financed. In Europe, the platform controls just over 5% of the market and has over 58,000 registered investors.

Like Mintos, TWINO also expects to move from unregulated to regulated investments within a few weeks. Thanks to the new European legislation, they are therefore covered by the investor protection scheme of a maximum of 20,000 euros.

My investments at TWINO returned € 17.21 last month, and my average return rate is now 9.7%.

 Viainvest

Now that Mintos and TWINO are making the transition to regulated investments, I expect Viainvest to announce something about this soon. Viainvest received the Investment Brokerage Firm license at the end of last year, at which point they entered a six-month transition phase. I think it’s kind of coming to an end now.

My investments at Viainvest returned € 25.64 last month, and my average return rate is now 11.9%.

Crowdfunding

 CrowdAboutNow

Through CrowdAboutNow I have now made two investments. With my first investment, I acquired a share in Beer in a Box, known for its great specialty beer subscriptions. The second was in a loan to LOCBrewery from Tilburg. It is of course pure coincidence that these are both beer-related investments, although I am a beer brewer myself.

I’m still waiting for another stock campaign on Crowdaboutnow, because I don’t really want to invest in any more loans here. This platform is in my Crowdfunding category because it is mainly investments where you get a share in start-up companies, and if I then mainly invest in loans then it no longer distinguishes itself from the other platforms and categories.

Last month my account value at CrowdAboutNow did not change, and my average return rate is still 0.0%.

 Crowdcube

Crowdcube is the first platform in Europe to receive a crowdfunding license. This makes it easier for them to offer services throughout Europe, and it also means a little more protection for investors.

Last month my account value at Crowdcube decreased by € 34.46, and my average return rate is now 0.1%.

 Seedrs

At the beginning of last year it was announced that the merger between Seedrs and Crowdcube would not go through, and at the end of last year that Seedrs would instead be acquired by Republic. As it stands, only larger shareholders will receive part Republic shares and part cash for their Seedrs shares, and small shareholders are being bought out completely. I have bought some shares of Seedrs through the Seedrs platform itself, and fall into the latter category.

I’m fine with that too, reportedly paying around £23.59 per share. When I invested in 2019 the price per share was £16.51 so that looks set to be a nice profit. Then it can nicely compensate for the fall in value of Loowatt, which has fallen by 20% from 10 pounds to 8 pounds.

Last month my account value at Seedrs decreased by € 234.81, and my average return rate is now 8.0%.

Stock

 DEGIRO

Last month in my portfolio at DEGIRO fell in value quite a bit, but still consists for just over half of pure profit. And the return has dropped slightly, but at about 25% it still looks fine.

A while ago I started here to invest in ETFs that are mainly focused on dividends. I also have a few more digital security ETFs here and some physical gold, I think I’m going to sell those next month now that they’re on a small profit. I want to divide the released amounts equally among those 5 dividend ETFs.

Last month my account value at DEGIRO decreased by € 1,247.26, and my average return rate is now 24.6%.

 ING

Since I forgot to make monthly purchases in precious metals and economics ETFs at ING last month, I bought double this month.

I deposit the same amount in both categories, so normally the ratio in my portfolio is 50%-50%. But the graph below shows that economic conditions and events such as the war can have a major effect. But it can also be seen that the prices are moving towards each other again.

Last month my account value at ING decreased by € 90.12, and my average return rate is now 11.0%.

 Saxo Bank

I’ve been thinking about selling the rest of my oil at Saxo Bank as well, the price still fluctuates around 23 euros. The purchase price was 2.40 and when I bought it I thought that a rate of 20 to 30 euros would be a theoretical maximum. Then 23 euros is of course very nice, but I hear all kinds of signals that the price could rise much further due to the war and the sanctions. Because I’ve already cashed in huge profits on it, I don’t mind betting on an even higher rate, I can’t lose anymore.

Aegon shares are now fluctuating at 5 euros, which means that after the sharp fall in the Corona time, it is again close to the highest level of the past 5 years. So I’ve now placed sell orders to sell them all, in packs of 200 at a progressively higher sell price.

My investments at Saxo Bank returned € 1,506.02 last month, and my average return rate is now 95.5%.

And finally…

That was it for this monthly update. You can subscribe via the contact page and you’ll receive an email the moment a new update is published. Or just visit again next month, that’s up to you.

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Disclaimer: I share my experiences on this site, and blog about my results and things I encounter. It is for informational purposes only and cannot be considered professional advice. Investments bring risk and you should never invest funds that you are not willing to lose. I think my site is a nice start, but do your own research and make sure you understand the risks before you start to invest yourself. You can read more about this here.