Lendermarket Review – More than 14% return from Estonia?

How to deposit Funds

Depositing funds is, as always, the easiest step in investing. In your account, you will see a “deposit” button. When you click on it, you will be provided with transfer details that you can use. You can set up a payment template with your bank for this purpose, just like I have done with many other platforms. Please note that transfers must come from a personal bank account. These will also be verified for future withdrawals.

An investor also reported to me that it’s not possible to open an account if you have a joint account. This should be considered during registration.

This is how you need to deposit your money on Lendermarket.

How to withdraw money

If you want to withdraw capital or excess interest from the P2P platform, you can use the “withdraw” button in the bottom right corner of your account summary. There are no fees for withdrawing funds.

The funds can only be withdrawn to the bank account from which the deposit was made. If you wish to register a new account for withdrawals, you need to make a new deposit from a new personal account. Please note that there is a withdrawal minimum of 50 EUR on the platform.

Can I deposit and withdraw with a credit card?

Currently, you cannot use credit cards for deposits and withdrawals. These transactions must be done exclusively through a bank account. Depositing through a bank account also serves purposes such as identification.

How does Lendermarket work?

After registration, you have two options to invest your money.

1. You can manually invest money on the primary market.
2. You can build your portfolio completely automatically using the Auto Invest feature.

This is how the loans are displayed on Lendermarket.

As a passive investor looking to save time, the automatic option would be preferable here, as always.

The Lendermarket Auto Invest

On Lendermarket there is an Auto Invest and you can even create more than one and sort by priority.. With Lendermarket’s automatic portfolio builder, you can specify the countries and interest rates you want to invest in. Additionally, the setup process is very straightforward. You can define the following:

1. Portfolio size
2. Minimum and maximum amount per loan
3. Whether you want to reinvest or not
4. Interest rate
5. Loan term
6. and the lenders

The Auto Invest of Lendermarket.

In which countries can you invest?

You primarily invest in P2P loans from the Creditstar Group, which operates in 7 countries: Czech Republic, Finland, Poland, Spain, Estonia, Denmark, and Sweden. In addition, there are now other external lenders available, allowing you to invest in additional countries as well. You can find the complete list of loan originators directly on Lendermarket.

What types of loans can you invest in on Lendermarket?

Investors in P2P loans here primarily earn their returns from loans in the consumer sector. Borrowers directly take loans from the Creditstar Group, which are then listed on the platform, and we, as investors, can allocate funds into these loans.

The business models of external lenders are different. Here, too, there are consumer loans, but also real estate loans.

Is there a buyback guarantee on Lendermarket?

Yes, the P2P platform provides a buyback guarantee. If the borrower is overdue with their payment for 60 days, the loans, including the accrued interest up to that point, will be repaid. However, the individual policies of specific lenders need to be taken into account. Loans from the lender Creditstar, for instance, can be extended multiple times, resulting in a total loan duration of up to 240 days.

Furthermore, there’s something called a “group guarantee.” This provides an additional layer of protection. It’s an enterprise guarantee from the Creditstar Group, which means that in the event of a lender’s insolvency, the Creditstar Group covers all liabilities arising from the buyback obligations of that lender. You can always check which lender offers what security on the Lendermarket website under the “loan originator” section.

Is there an app for Lendermarket?

No, there is currently no smartphone app available for Lendermarket.

Can you invest money in other currencies?

No, you always invest in euros here.

How does the taxation work for Lendermarket?

The platform doesn’t deduct any taxes on your behalf. You are responsible for reporting your earnings to the tax authorities in your jurisdiction.

Is there a tax certificate on Lendermarket?

Yes, there is now a proper tax certificate available for download as a PDF. You can find it in your profile under the “Tax Report” section.

Here’s how you easily generate a tax report on Lendermarket.

Lendermarket Risk

Based on my Lendermarket review, the P2P platform could be an interesting alternative in a P2P portfolio, but it also has some risks that you should be aware of! However, it is also one of the riskiest platforms in the P2P environment!

How does Lendermarket make money?

The P2P platform’s revenue comes from fees charged by the Creditstar Group. Since both companies are more or less connected, it can be said that they rely on the parent company’s revenues. However, with the transition to a marketplace model in early 2022, additional income streams are added.

Is Lendermarket profitable?

Since 2020, there are audited financial reports available for Lendermarket Limited, separate from the Creditstar Group. The latest report from 2021 shows a negative result, but it’s important to remember that Lendermarket is a growing startup. So, the result shouldn’t be taken too heavily into consideration. Additionally, they still have the strong backing of the Creditstar Group.

Excerpt from the Lendermarket 2021 Financial Report.

What happens if Lendermarket goes bankrupt?

In the event that the P2P platform faces financial difficulties or has to declare bankruptcy, the company will likely be liquidated by a third party, and existing loans will continue to run. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the P2P platform is part of the Creditstar Group. This aspect further reduces the platform risk.

How reputable is Lendermarket?

Due to the close connection between the P2P platform and the Creditstar Group, which is one of the top lenders on Mintos, it can be assumed that we are dealing with a reputable platform here.

Speaking of Mintos, it’s worth mentioning that in 2022, Mintos investors were kept waiting for many months regarding repayments while the company focused on advancing their own platform. This caused a significant reputation damage that still affects the company.

But that’s not all. In 2023, this game was also played with the company’s own investors, which will continue in 2024. The amount of the outstanding payments is completely unknown. Private investors are definitely not Lendermarket’s or Creditstar’s top priority, you should be aware of that.

How secure is Lendermarket?

Due to its relatively young age, it’s difficult to say much about the security of the company. From an external perspective, everything seems quite solid. Additionally, the Creditstar Group in the background has been in operation since 2006.

However, due to its financial situation, its demise has been predicted for many years. Nothing has happened yet. Nevertheless, if the worst comes to the worst, it will take Lendermarket down with it.

Is there a deposit insurance on Lendermarket?

No, absolutely not. Lendermarket is not a bank and therefore does not fall under any European deposit insurance. All funds you invest on the platform are subject to a high risk of default.

Lendermarket in Crisis Situations

Investors on Lendermarket have been able to navigate through all crises in a relaxed manner so far.

Pros and Cons of Lendermarket

Before we reach a final conclusion about the platform, here is a summary of the pros and cons of my Lendermarket review:

Cons ➖

• The P2P platform is also listed on Mintos. If you have both platforms in your portfolio and invest in Creditstar loans on Mintos as well, there’s a risk of concentration.
• Although the company behind Lendermarket is 15 years old, the platform itself is quite young.
• Some loans have a rather long duration. Estonian loans on the platform can last up to 7 years.
• Due to the lack of a secondary market, you have no option to exit your investment prematurely.
• The P2P platform is highly non-transparent.
• Communication is definitely not the platform’s strong point.
• It seems that Creditstar is still pulling the strings in the background and Lendermarket has nothing to say in case of doubt.

Pros ➕

• Having the backing of the Creditstar Group provides a partner with over 10 years of profitable operation.
• With an average interest rate of 12 – 14% and even more, investors here can be quite profitable.
• The website is straightforward and easy to navigate.
• All loans come with a buyback guarantee.
• Lendermarket offers loans from relatively low-risk countries.

Conclusion of my Lendermarket review

Lendermarket is still a fairly new P2P platform on the market and it is therefore difficult for me to rate it. However, if I compare it with my other P2P platforms that I started with in 2015, we can already see a significant leap in development here. Unfortunately, they are not making anything of it.

Basically, the way the P2P platform is structured is very reminiscent of Peerberry. They were founded from the Aventus Group and the rest has been a real success story to date. Will we see something similar here?

Unfortunately, the recent past does not speak in favor of this. Hardly any communication, pending payments without repayment plans and a puppet platform of the large Creditstar Group. Lendermarket is unlikely to become a long-term investment (as things stand today).

If you want something simpler and without pending payments, you can also use the Monefit SmartSaver product. It is aimed more at passive investors and works like Bondora Go & Grow, serving many investors as an “overnight money substitute”.

Is there a Lendermarket forum for discussion?

There are several places where you can engage with other investors and gather Lendermarket experiences. There’s also an international investors’ group on Telegram where you can participate in discussions.

Is there a bonus or refer-a-friend program when starting on Lendermarket?

You can refer friends to Lendermarket. Both you and your friend will receive a 1% cashback of your friend’s invested capital after 30 days, up to 3,000 EUR. However, using my link, this is extended to 60 days, making it a better start for your own Lendermarket review.

Sign up now and collect 1% cashback after 60 days*

Lendermarket vs. Mintos

I’m often asked by many how certain platforms compare to Mintos or if they are an alternative. In my opinion, both platforms are not directly comparable. The reasons for this are quite simple:

1. Mintos is a marketplace with over 60 loan originators, such as the Creditstar Group, in its portfolio. Lendermarket has only recently started adding external loan originators.
2. If the Creditstar Group encounters issues with its loans, it’s highly likely that ALL of your P2P loans on Lendermarket will be affected.
3. If a similar scenario occurs on Mintos, only a portion of your portfolio will be affected.

As you can see, it’s an “apples and oranges” comparison. However, you can use Lendermarket as a supplement and, for example, remove the loan originator from Mintos from your portfolio.