Page 14 - ASSET MANAGER 9 (EN)

MICHAEL BORTER
CEO cashare AG
Email: michael.borter@cashare.ch Phone: +41 41 558 53 95
14 • CASHARE
THE CROWDLENDING MARKET
IS GROWING RAPIDLY
With a brokered loan volume of 186.7 million Francs (55.1 million Francs in the previous year) and growth of 240 per cent, the crowdlending industry grew strongly. Various experts from the financial sector predict that 2018 credit volumes of around CHF 500 million Francs can be expected.
Author: Michael Borter, CEO Cashare AG
Only recently, a comprehensive study focusing on the Swiss crowdlending-market was published for the first time by the Institute for Financial Services Zug IFZ of the University of Lucerne (HSLU) and PwC.
Conclusion of the study: Switzerland saw a marked growth in 2017, which will continue to increase in the coming years.
Loan sums per borrower have also increased rapidly. This clearly shows that crowdlending, an exotic phenomenon at the time, has become a socially accepted form of financ- ing. In the year 2016, the average loan value for SMEs was CHF 171,000 . In the meantime, the sum has increased to
CHF 300,000 within one year . The largest financed SME loan of CHF 8.7 million is an individual case so far, but clearly shows what potential crowdlending has. Already in 2008, the Fintech pioneer Cashare Crowdlending was introduced in Switzerland and has since established itself as the largest platform, with over CHF 425 million credit requests and more than 27,000 users.
Professional investment opportunities for investors
Cashare is actively participating in the growth of the crowdlending industry. Simplified processes and new technologies bring progress and more customer satisfac- tion. Due to strong demand from institutional investors, these have been approved on the platform for 2016 and are rapidly increasing the available capital. Like private in- vestors, institutional investors can put together their own portfolios or invest quickly and easily in a clearly defined loan portfolio using suitable financial instruments such as notes or funds (AIF).
The advantage here is that these financial instruments can also be booked into the custody account using an ISIN number, making reporting much easier and more efficient. At the same time, this investment approach not only re-