December 2019 Portfolio Update

Year in Review, New Goals, and Black Clouds hanging over the P2P Industry, but Savings4Freedom evolved from 200€ in monthly returns by December 2018 to more than 600€ by December 2019! Crowdlending gains in 2019 are €4.918,93!
Happy 2020 @ Savings4Freedom

December 2019: Year in Review, New Goals, and Black Clouds hanging over the P2P Industry

Hi Savings4Freedom friends! Happy 2020!

Nothing better than starting a new year by reviewing the previous one, but I also want to share with you my plans for the future.

What an experience so far! From all the enthusiasm in January 2019 with my initial post to the alarming news by the end of the year (Kuetzal is a SCAM), I learned so much! I´m really happy to have the opportunity to share with you my decisions, successes, and failures. I find this transparency as a brutal call to keep my goals and achieve them. Thank you so much for your support, questions, and suggestions.


Savings4Freedom Results from 2019

Last year key indicators are very positive:

  • From ~200€ in monthly returns by December 2018 to more than 600€ by December 2019. This returns resulted in €1.693,83 (before taxes) in 2018 and €4.918,93 (before taxes) in 2019.

However, the key lesson from 2019 is that P2P returns are not real until they are back into your bank account, from your P2P platform. P2P crowdlending is a high-risk investment and everyone needs to have this message clear in their analysis before investing.


Savings4Freedom Key Goals for 2020

Now I want to share with you my 4 key objectives for 2020:

Objective 1: Reduce and Rebalance my P2P Crowdinvesting Portfolio

During 2019 my main goal was to maximize returns from my P2P investments. This decision drove my actions from P2Consumer crowdlending platforms, such as Mintos, Viventor, Grupeer, FastInvest or Robocash towards P2Business crowdinvestment platforms, such as Monethera, Wisefund, Envestio, Crowdestor, TFGcrowd, or Kuetzal (read the review). This increased the portfolio risk in a significant manner.

The results have been positive, as you can see in the table below:

SAVINGS4FREEDOM Portfolio20182019
Internal Rate of Return (IRR)13.02%14.74%
True Time-Weighted Rate of Return9.32%14.83%

However, since Kuetzal (read the review) is confirmed as a scam, all the positive outlook presented above disappears in one instant. That is one of the potential risks of these types of investments. I want to emphasize to all my friends the same warning.

In light of this reality, I will reduce in half my portfolio and rebalance my P2P investments portfolio in such a manner that I genuinely diversify my crowdlending investment, but at the same time, I gain comparative visibility over the results obtained from my different P2P platform choices on a monthly basis.

The reduction of my P2P portfolio aims towards reducing the risk of my overall investments and my exposure to this particular asset class. Until more information is available, I suggest everyone to wait.

This will be reflected initially in the €2.5K club: I will reduce the exposure I have in some of the P2P platforms I use where I invest more than €2.5K and increase in others where I currently allocate less than €2.5K. I will update this approach based on market conditions or particular industry information. This decision will pressure me to assume higher discipline and control my willingness to invest in higher return/risk platforms.

Two main implications will happen from this process:

a) My monthly returns will drop since I will move funds from P2P platforms with higher interest rates towards others with lower interest rates; but also…
b) I will keep validating the liquidity of my P2P investments, by continuous withdrawal of funds from multiple platforms every single month. This action, if successful, will allow me to keep trust in my P2P investments.

Objective 2: Explore New Investment Options

The key reason why I invest in P2P lending and crowdinvesting is the simplicity of the idea behind this investment model: money + time = interest. Also, it was my personal understanding that with an investment portfolio below €50K, I was not able to obtain true diversification by dividing my savings into other asset classes.

One of my objectives for 2020 is precisely to explore other investment options towards a more balanced and reliable return strategy. This means not only the exploration of the stock market (I’m currently learning how to invest by using eToro €100K virtual portfolio simulator) but also other alternative investments that I will share with you along this year.

Objective 3: Start a New Business

As probably some of you are aware, my wife is a pet-sitter at 4EveryPet.

4EveryPet @ Savings4Freedom

With the funds made available from P2P investment withdrawals, one of my personal goals for the year is to build a digital business based on this particular niche market. This will be a particularly challenging objective, that will demand significant investment and with no promise of actual returns in the short term, but this is a long-term plan. I truly want to kick-off this project and turn it into reality until the end of the year.

Objective 4: Improve the Savings4Freedom Blog Design, Contents Quality, and Value

This last objective results from your direct feedback. I really appreciate all your direct messages, emails, and comments during 2019. I took note of your impressions and ideas on how the blog should improve and I will do my best to deliver.

As stated above, this blog works for me as a powerful motivational tool. It keeps me focused to report my findings, share my opinions and results every single month. But the most interesting aspect was the opening of conversations and network opportunities with fellow investors that face the same problems and search for the most reliable solutions.

Savings4Freedom

These are the key reasons why I will dedicate more time to the blog in 2020.

But, without any further due, let’s check the Savings4Freedom returns!


S4F Portfolio Update December 2019

You can see real screenshots of my accounts and my summary review of the platforms by checking my P2P platforms portfolio page.

Due to all the confusion around crowdlending that happened in November, combined with the holidays and family time, December was the most quiet month in a long time for my portfolio.

Over last month, I finally recovered my delayed investments in Viventor, reaching my 500€ end of the year goal. Mintos almost reached the same level. Based on my 2020 goals, I will reinvest some funds on these two platforms again. I transferred savings to Monethera, Envestio, and FastInvest. Withdraw funds from Mintos, Viventor, and iban Wallet.

No reinforcements or withdrawals from Kuetzal (warning message on the report below), Grupeer, Wisefund, Crowdestor, and TFG crowd.

Instead of starting my test investments on IUVO Group, Fellow Finance, Lendermarket, and Boldyield I decided to wait and see the industry developments during the beginning of the year.

But there is a new platform I truly want to test: NEXO. Some fellow investors already told me great things about this Cryptocurrency Backed Loans platform and how they earn an 8% annual interest rate. How? In reality, with over 250,000 users, NEXO is the world’s biggest interest-earning platform. Interests are compounded, paid daily, and with no fees. One of the interesting aspects of the platform is that NEXO is 100% Asset-Backed, with funds secured at all times by Lloyd’s of London insurance amounting to $100 million per each customer.

I will research more but seems like an interesting competitor for iban Wallet regarding my short-term savings. Since I will be looking to save towards my new business, earning some extra daily interest on these funds is really attractive.


In 2019, my Top personal P2P platform choices were responsible for almost all the returns obtained by Savings4Freedom. I will try to recover my funds from Kuetzal and eventually close my position, and I decided to do the same with my FastInvest account, for different reasons that I explain later in the post.

PlatformLoan TypeAverage Annual Interest RateAverage Annual Interest Rate
Monethera @ Savings4FreedomMonetheraEnterprise & Real Estate~19%In case you employ my referral link to invest in Monethera you earn 5€ in cash bonus and 0.5% on all investments over the first 180 days in cashback.

SPECIAL Savings4Freedom CASHBACK BONUS: in case you use the promo code: savings4freedom, you will get cashback for 360 days instead of 180 days! This is a limited offer! Only the first 50 accounts to add this promo code enjoy this cashback bonus.

Check my initial review on Monethera and details on my account here.
Envestio @ Savings4FreedomEnvestioEnterprise & Real Estate~17%In case you employ my referral link to invest in Envestio you earn 5€ in cash bonus and 0.5% on all investments over the first 270 days in cashback.

Check my Envestio account here.
KuetzalSCAM~0%WARNING: Fraud platform!
Please don’t invest. Read the section about Kuetzal below!

Check my Kuetzal account here.
Wisefund Logo @ Savings4FreedomWisefundEnterprise & Real Estate~19%In case you employ my referral link to invest in Wisefund you earn 0.5% on all investments over the first 270 days in cashback.

Check my Wisefund account here.
Crowdestate Logo @ Savings4FreedomCrowdestorEnterprise & Real Estate~17%In case you employ my referral link to invest in Crowdestor you earn 0.5% on all investments over the first 180 days in cashback.

Check my Crowdestor account here.
TFG Crowd Logo @ Savings4FreedomTFGCrowdEnterprise & Real Estate~17%No bonus for new investors from TFGCrowd, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my TFG Crowd account here.
Grupeer @ Savings4FreedomGrupeerEnterprise & Real Estate~13%In case you employ my referral link to invest in Grupeer you earn 1.25% on all investments over the first 6 months in cashback.

Check my Grupeer account here.
Mintos Logo @ Savings4FreedomMintosConsumer~11%In case you employ my referral link to invest in Mintos you earn 0.5% on all investments over the first 90 days in cashback.

Check my Mintos account here.
FastInvest @ Savings4FreedomFastInvestConsumer~10%No bonus for new investors from FastInvest, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my FastInvest account here.
Viventor @ Savings4FreedomViventorConsumer~11%No bonus for new investors from Viventor, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my Viventor account here.
iban wallet @ Savings4Freedomiban WalletConsumer2.5%You can sign up and invest through my referral link you can join the iban Wallet referral program and get €25 for every invitee that invests more than €1000.

Make sure to add the referral code – RCARLOS3EG8D – when creating your account!

Special Savings4Freedom Blog Bonus: during December and January, every reader who joins iban Wallet will get a 3% interest rate on their iban Wallet account for 6 months by adding €300 or more using the code XMAS3.

Note: this is a bonus which has a minimum deposit amount to be activated, this code needs to be inserted after the registration process, in the top up the account step. 
iban bonus @ Savings4Freedom

Check my initial review on iban wallet and details on my account here.

N26 account, Revolut, and Transferwise

Start using my N26 Account was one of my best decisions in 2019! It makes it so much easier for me to manage my P2P lending portfolio. With all the transactions between P2P platforms, it would be impossible for me to manage without the simple interface N26 offers. I highly recommend it!

If you decide to create an account, please use this link or write the referral code: carlosb2903

My decision to follow the 3 buckets account approach is working:

This approach, combined with the use of Transferwise when I need to exchange currencies is simplifying my life and increasing visibility over all my transactions.


S4F Monthly Income Statement: December 2019

PlatformInvested (€)Month Return (€)Asset Profit (€)Asset Value (€)
MONETHERA7.574,90113,27425,108.000,00
GRUPEER4.545,3557,20818,715.364,06
WISEFUND3.406,2954,83167,333.573,62
ENVESTIO5.478,7984,87771,316.250,10
CROWDESTOR2.121,761,1732,942.154,70
TFGcrowd1.829,4627,7072,131.901,59
MINTOS-1.260,992,061.822.39561,40
VIVENTOR-971,72115,231.472,17500,45
IBAN WALLET652,11150,27347,901000,01
KUETZAL (SCAM)2.794,7545,04214,543.009,29
FASTINVEST1.912,0319,30107,272.019,30
COINBASE20,00-2,385,8325,83
BULLIONVAULT1.038,2823,65314,021.352,30
ESTATEGURU100,000,004,84104,84
HOUSERS50,000,5751,30101,30
REINVEST24100,000,00-2,0098,00
BRICKSTARTER50,000,1616,0166,01
FINBEE20,46-0,911,7322,27
MONESTRO16,001,005,0021,00
VIAINVEST-3,000,1813,6120,59
ROBOCASH0,000,0075,230,00
EVOESTATE0,000,0031,000,00
LENNDY0,000,0013,160,00
NEOFINANCE0,000,0033,030,00
CROWDESTATE0,000,0056,610,00
BULKESTATE0,000,0071,500,00
EKASSA0,000,000,570,00
PEERBERRY0,000,005,410,00
DOFINANCE0,000,004,950,00
DEBITUM0,000,007,940,00
BONDORA0,000,000,500,00
FLENDER0,000,000,000,00
RENDITY0,000,000,000,00
PROFITUS0,000,000,000,00
COINLOAN0,000,000,000,00
BITBOND0,000,000,000,00
PREPAYWAY0,000,000,000,00
 29.474,47693,216.961,5336.146,66

To get a comparative analysis based on my personal opinion about multiple other platforms, please check my P2P lending platforms comparison page.



P2P Lending Portfolio Performance

Since I first started investing in P2P lending, my returns from crowdlending totals €6.612,76 (€671,94 in interest during December 2019). More 94,60€ than in November!

I’m truly impressed with the impact of compounding interest in the growth of my P2P portfolio. Even after withdrawing a significant amount of funds in October 2019, since these funds were invested in iban wallet, my portfolio performance was not affected. I expect this reality to change once I start the reallocation process defined for 2020, as well as how the process to recover funds from Kuetzal will evolve. If I’m not able to recover funds during January, I will recognize the loss immediately.

In October 2019 I needed to use a significant amount of funds for personal reasons. The reason why I choose iban Wallet was exactly to allow me to have access to my funds immediately, without the need to sell my position or wait for liquidity. As stated above, I will test NEXO for the same purpose.



P2P Platforms Monthly Review

Before moving to individual platform analysis, I want to share with you a publication from Ido Shkedi that makes perfect sense right now: Don’t Panic. It is an excellent text that goes over crucial aspects that can define the future of the entire industry.

Good news: Also highly important to state that according to Jørgen Wolf from Financially Free 5-6 platforms are now working to create a group/association with the purpose of telling everyone “We approve each other’s work”. This is a direct effort to build trust among the investors’ community and to differentiate themselves from “less trusted platforms”.


Monethera

Monethera @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 8,000€ invested in Monethera. I got 113.27€ in interest. Until now, Monethera IRR is 17.40%. Monethera is joining my 2.5K club, and that means I will reduce my position over time to adjust my portfolio to that plan.

Mixed feeling this month with Monethera. For the first time, they promoted a project that raised concerns… and the timing was perfect: right on target during the Kuetzal scam discussion.

Monethera Returns @ Savings4Freedom
I took full advantage of the initial cashback offered by Monethera. Check the news below about the Promo Code feature to learn how to extend yours!

Monethera offers among the best interest rates in the business with a buyback guarantee. But with great returns, greater risks. Make sure you gather information before investing.

Coldbrook Services LTD Questions

Coldbrook Services Monethera @ Savings4Freedom

Let’s explain. During December Monethera presented for funding Coldbrook Services LTD, a UK company looking for funding for “Cloud computing services” project. But when you search for the address, you realize that it matches hundreds of different companies. Even worst, the nature of the registered business is confusing:

Nature of business (SIC)

10890 – Manufacture of other food products not elsewhere classified
46190 – Agents involved in the sale of a variety of goods
46380 – Wholesale of other food, including fish, crustaceans and molluscs
47290 – Other retail sale of food in specialised stores

COLDBROOK SERVICES LIMITED, Company number 09157902

When you research the company owner, more questions arise: The company is owned by Renars Bumanis, that had an active LinkedIn profile before this process. For some reason, I’m not able to find it and share now…

In addition, the company that is the target for purchase, AlfaLink was liquidated in November, unless I’m doing something wrong in my search, which includes the research shared by Roasted PeerDuck.

Monethera decided to publish a blog post on the subject, addressing some of the concerns, but without providing any information capable of reassuring investors. Read for yourself and judge here.

Story Conclusion

I didn’t invest in this project. Monethera was my top P2P platform choice from 2019, but this type of project raises concerns and questions.

Monethera continues to offer me a great investing experience. Good projects, descriptions, and financials that allow me to make informed decisions to invest. Until this particular project, in the project descriptions, Monethera makes an effort to justify the interest rates. I wonder if the numbers are realistic, but at least they seem to make sense. I will make sure to double my research efforts before each investment.

Total investment in Monethera during 2019 exceeded €4.5M, with an average APR of 18.7%.

What have been your experiences investing in Monethera loans until now? Please share it with the community in the comments section.

Monethera Projects @ Savings4Freedom
Currently, only one project is open to investors on Monethera

Only one project remains open at the moment I write this update. The number of investors Monethera continues to grow quickly.

Monethera Updates

Monethera: Blackmail Victim?

“Before going forward, we are disappointed to share really sad news. Together with reasonable questions, we have received threats. We were blackmailed by publishing trumped-up information if we did not pay a certain amount of money.”

All you wanted to know about Coldbrook Services LTD Monethera Blog Post

In light of all stress around the Kuetzal debacle, investors are especially prone to nervous reactions to any type of bad information. I don’t know what to think about the statement presented above by Monethera, but I think all P2P crowdinvesting platforms could benefit from higher transparency on their communications with investors.

On this blog post, Monethera justifies how they can present such high-interest rates, but you cannot find a single piece of information that can offer additional clarity. I would like to read the information on the following topics:

  • Additional information and details about the fund prior to the platform creation;
  • Financial statements of project borrowers;
  • Concrete and detailed explanation about how the monthly interest repayments are paid.

This would be much more valuable than simple write empty blog posts like the one they publish.

Monethera: BuyBack Guarantee from Third-party Organization from Hong Kong

On December 20th, Monethera added more questions about the platform policies by announcing an additional BuyBack Guarantee from a Third-party Organization. You can read the blog post here.

This for me is problematic. Just read the notes from Roasted PeerDuck on the subject:

“Ok, something about Monethera and their mysterious RICHLY PACIFIC INTERNATIONAL LIMITED fund.

1. The company has zero history in the Web. For the financial company, with high-level lawyers, dealing with bankruptcy cases it is impossible. Minimum, you will find traces in Linkedin, normally – press publication on major deals.

2. All “funds” are the subject of regulation in HK – there is no such fund

3. HK companies are easy to buy, both fresh and with history. Usually HK shelf companies contain generic word name both to avoid trademark claims and be cross-industry flexible. Like ATLANTIC GOLD INVESTMENT LIMITED. Or similar.

4. There is no logical point for real HK company, located in other part of the world and operated under British-type legislation to mess with the bankrupted companies in the Baltic, which is not even in the scope of chinese interests (unlike Russia, Poland or Belarus).

5. They state that collector will buy out 95% of investments. This is something out of the real-world financial machinery. The rates in case of bad debt buyouts are RARELY higher than 30%. Usually – 10-20%. As usually one of four will be reclaimed and the legal effort is huge.

Striking off – the whole Monethera text is hip-hazard bullshit, however it is not indicating that they are scammers or similar. Just the fact that the person who made up all joke about HK collector is far away from finance. Opposite the story would be at least more realistic.”

Roasted PeerDuck Twitter Publication

This is a true bad signal from Monethera. I believe they need to actively answer these questions in a clear manner. Again, I really like the platform, but I cannot close my eyes to the reality that these questions good answers.

Monethera: Platform Development Roadmap

New Promo Code Feature

Monethera just made available on your dashboard a new feature that allows you to use promo codes (like savings4freedom) to extend the 0,5% cashback to a period of up to 360 days! Don’t miss it. The code can only be used a limited number of times, but it can’t hurt to try!

Loan Contracts available for Download

You can now go to the investments page and download your loan contracts.

Auto-invest Feature

Monethera plans to make available the Auto Invest option. Its integration is planned for January-February 2020.

New Investors Validation through 3rd-party Feature

Monethera plans to make changes to the KYC procedure. Monethera has signed an agreement with Idenfy, a company specialized in the process. This will improve and speed up document verification for new users. Monethera promises that this procedure will take no more than 5 minutes. This update is scheduled for the first part of January 2020.

Monethera: Financial Results of 2019

In February 2020, Monethera will update the statistics in the “About Us” section. The tracking record for 2019 will be available. I’m curious to learn more about the information they will share.

Monethera: Sharing Savings4Freedom Review

It was really great to see Monethera sharing my review about the platform on their blog. Thank you for your support in making the post visible to Monethera marketing team. I hope you guys see value in this blog content.

Monethera: Second Project Principal Repayment

On January 7th, Monethera repaid the “Sturgeon farm productions extension” project. It was a 6-month project and the principal amount repayment has been made on time.

Monethera: Liquidity Test

In line with my 2020 objectives, I withdraw funds from Monethera in order to reach the €2.5K goal to manage my P2P lending platforms. This also works as a liquidity test. I will share updates on a monthly basis.

Monethera: Growing Number of Investors

The number of investors is growing and at the beginning of January, Monethera shared that they currently have 2224 investors, from 1754 in December.

Monethera Cashback & Bonus

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Monethera you earn 5€ in cash bonus and 0.5% on all investments over the first 180 days in cashback.

SPECIAL CASHBACK BONUS: in case you use the promo code: savings4freedom, you will get cashback for 360 days instead of 180 days. This is a limited offer! The code can only be used a limited number of times, but it can’t hurt to try!

Check my initial review on Monethera and details on my account here.



Grupeer

Grupeer @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 5,364.06€ invested in Grupeer. I got 57.20€ in interest. Until now, Grupeer IRR is 14.65%. Grupeer is joining my €2.5K club, and that means I will reduce my position over time to adjust my portfolio to that plan.

Another smooth month for Grupeer in my portfolio. It’s one of my preferred P2P platforms. Let’s see what the future holds in 2020.

Grupeer Returns @ Savings4Freedom
Grupeer: smooth performance over time, aligned with my investments

After reducing my position on Grupeer in July, due to the repayment of a big number of loans, I started reinvested during August: Now I will begin the process to align the value in my account with the €2.5K club goal.

Grupeer Updates

Grupeer: Vladislavs Filimonovs left the company

Vladislavs Filimonovs, previously Grupeer COO, left the company in October. He was one of the public faces of the company and human resources management is one of the critical aspects of the industry. Grupeer published a facebook comment making clear their policy regarding this type of announcements:

“Dear all, it is not in Grupeer‘s public relations agenda to make announcements regarding the internal staff turnover. Alla is a co-founder and always has been the central person representing the company and running the business. She is present and is involved more than ever.

The information regarding staff is available on request and we have communicated with all bloggers who have asked us questions. Viktorija has left tin August, she was responsible for Grupeer affiliates and she has notified all bloggers regarding her departure from Grupeer and has passed the new contact details.”

Grupeer Facebook comment addressing the topic

High employee turnover is common in high-tech, and it is becoming very difficult to build teams that remain over a long period to implement a product/vision for a company. As investors, we need to keep calm and follow the P2P platforms closely in order to keep up with such type of changes. Thank you Angelo CB for your research on the subject!

Grupeer: CEO Letter

Grupeer CEO, Alla Kisika sent a message to all investors with the highlights from 2019 and plans for 2020:

We have definitely grown in size during the 2019 and we are now one of the most recognizable P2P investment platforms in Europe. The monthly investments have increased three-fold during the past year and the number of clients increased from almost 4,000 to over 22,000!” 

During this year we have listened to the feedback from our customers very carefully and have implemented some suggestions. However, the long-awaited secondary market and some additional products are still to be launched. While we focused on the throughout due diligence and diversification of investments, we have pulled back with new products. We learnt our lesson and 2020 will be the year when the anticipated improvements and products will be realized.

Grupeer CEO Letter to Investors

I really like Grupeer and I’m looking forward to the platform development in the future.

Grupeer: New Loan Originator

Grupeer announced a new loan originator Cash-U Finance from Russia. You can read more about it here.

Grupeer Lime Loan Originator @ Savings4Freedom
Grupeer new loan originator: Cash-U Finance

Grupeer announced a new loan originator Dyninno Fintech from Moldova and Romania. You can read more about it here.

Dyninno Loan Originator @ Savings4Freedom
Grupeer new loan originator: Dyninno Fintech

Grupeer December Platform Update

Grupeer shared the update for December and the numbers continue the positive trend: €7.3M were invested, and 2057 new investors joined the platform. The average interest on the investments during the month was 13.04%.

Grupeer Update @ Savings4Freedom
Grupeer December 2019 Update

It is clear that with the growing number of investors in the platform it’s becoming more difficult to provide loans with the interest rates that lead me to invest. They are working hard to welcome more Loan Originators, but I truly want them to avoid following Mintos approach of going for quantity instead of quality.

Grupeer Cashback & Bonus

Grupeer 14% Increased Interest Rate

Grupeer announced that until January 12th interest rate on loans placed by three of their loan originators (Finsputnik, PlanetaCash and Primo Invest) will be increased to 14%.

Grupeer Increases Interest @ Savings4Freedom
Grupeer Increase interest for selected LOs

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Grupeer you earn 1.25% on all investments over the first 6 months in cashback.

Check my Grupeer account here.



Wisefund

Wisefund Logo @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 3,573.62€ invested in Wisefund. I got 54.83€ in interest. Until now, Wisefund IRR is 19.20%. Wisefund is joining my €2.5K club, and that means I will increase my position over time to adjust my portfolio to that plan.

Wisefund Returns @ Savings4Freedom
No investments during December. I’m taking full advantage of the initial cashback offered by Wisefund: 0.5% for the first 270 days

During December I didn’t invest in Wisefund. The promised platform update was done in time for the new year, and investors say they really see the value and improvement in transfers. They are really quick right now.

Wisefund offers among the best interest rates in the business with a buyback guarantee. All repayments schedule is visible and you can plan your next investments having this information into consideration. Once again, make sure you assess the risks of this type of investment before committing any of your savings.

Wisefund Projects @ Savings4Freedom
Example of projects available on Wisefund

In an environment where P2P platforms such as Mintos, Grupeer, FastInvest, and Viventor offer auto-invest options with interest lower than 13%, P2P platforms that offer all the decision power to select projects to invest, with higher interest rates in enterprise loans gain a growing relevance.

Wisefund Updates

Wisefund Platform Update

The Wisefund team released a new version of the platform, that took much more time than expected. The most valuable feature is associated with a smoother deposit/withdraw experience, that was already confirmed by multiple investors:

  1. Loan details will show Project name instead of the loan company, that were confusing users before;
  2. Account statement (any chosen date) download is available now, under ‘My account’;
  3. Fixed bug with payments schedule, now it will show the correct payment schedule when there is more than one investment in a loan;
  4. Notifications and requests will now not only be sent by email but also will pop up in your Wisefund profile.

Wisefund: 2019 in Review

The Wisefund team announced that until January 2020, €134.546 was paid in interest to investors, with an 18.20% average interest rate. And 1981 investors funded projects in a total of 3.495.000€.

Wisefund Cashback & Bonus

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Wisefund you earn 0.5% on all investments over the first 270 days in cashback.

Check my Wisefund account here.



Envestio

Envestio @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 6,250.10€ invested in Envestio. I got 84.87€ in interest. Until now, Envestio IRR is 17.22%. Envestio is joining my €2.5K club, and that means I will decrease my position over time to adjust my portfolio to that plan.

Envestio Returns @ Savings4Freedom
Smooth performance of Envestio, aligned with my investments

Envestio is right now another P2P crowdinvesting platform that is making me feel mixed feelings. I will reduce my position, but keep investing after assessing each project individually.

Unfortunately, until the moment, the new company CEO and COO only raised more questions. The lack of reliable information about past doings for both individuals is quite annoying.

Let’s go over the topic below.

Envestio Updates

Envestio: Acquisition by Arkadi Ganzin

On December 2nd, Envestio announced the acquisition of the platform by a strategic investor from Germany, Mr. Arkadi Ganzin. Not much is known about this investor, except the formal information shared by Envestio.

In any case, with the acquisition, the company will have a new COO, Eduard Ritsmann that states international sales experience in his profile. The former COO, Eugene Kukin will continue working as General Advisor for at least six more months after the acquisition and all team members are staying with the company.

A special piece of information relevant for you as an investor is that there will be no changes in existing Envestio conditions over a period of 1 year after the formal announcement.

Envestio: Questions about Eduard Ritsmann

One of the first pieces of information that came to light from investors’ research is related to the new Envestio COO, Eduard Ritsmann. And it wasn’t positive.

In order to introduce himself to investors, he decided to make a video. The end result was, in my opinion, a disaster. Check for yourself here.

In addition, some questionable prior assignments associated with Eduard Ritsmann started a lot of activity on the Envestio secondary market, with investors leaving the platform:

“I would like to introduce you mister Rittsman, the guest speaker for SAVETHEPLANET AG, better known as (ROSCH buoyancy power plant scam), presenting perpetum mobile hoax in July 2019, in MLM pyramid scam gathering called “ROY CLUB”.

Roasted PeerDuck Twitter Publication

In line with this information, Ido Shkedi published the response he received from Eduard, that in his opinion are calming news. Please read and judge for yourself here.

I will test the investment liquidity over next month in order to reach my €2.5K target and decide after how to proceed. In any case, I just want Envestio to be able to keep up its track record prior to the acquisition. Right now is not clear what goals and outcomes do Envestio intend to achieve? What is the future development strategy, what kind of projects will the platform work on in the future?

Envestio Cashback & Bonus

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Envestio you earn 5€ in cash bonus and 0.5% on all investments over the first 270 days in cashback.

Check my Envestio account here.



Crowdestor

Crowdestor Logo @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 2,154.70€ invested in Crowdestor. I got 1.17€ in interest. Until now, Crowdestor IRR is 5.30%. Crowdestor is joining my €2.5K club, and that means I will increase my position over time to adjust my portfolio to that plan.

Crowdestor Returns @ Savings4Freedom
No investments during December. I’m taking full advantage of the initial cashback offered by Crowdestor: 0.5% for the first 180 days

During December I didn’t invest in Crowdestor. This platform offers an impressive number of investments over time, with great interest rates. All repayment schedules are visible and you can plan your next investments having this information into consideration.

The Crowdestor projects are something to really feel like a speculative investor.

Please take into consideration before investing in Crowdestor that each project presents its particular type repayment plan: from one year without payment with bullet payment by the end of the loan maturity to other modalities that actually increase your investment risk.

Crowdestor Updates

Crowdestor: Buyback Fund Status Update

On December 31st, Crowdestor presented 212.331,08€ on its buyback fund. Still a small amount to ensure investors, a step in the good direction.

When they first announced the mechanism, they expected to reach €100K. The goal was surpassed due to the process to raise the value of the fund: From March 1st 2019, Crowdestor is devoting a commission of 1-2% from each project that is funded via Crowdestor Platform into the Buyback Guarantee Fund.

Crowdestor Cashback & Bonus

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Crowdestor you earn 0.5% on all investments over the first 180 days in cashback

Check my Crowdestor account here.



TFGcrowd

TFG Crowd Logo @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 1,901.59€ invested in TFGcrowd. I got 27.70€ in interest. Until now, TFGcrowd IRR is 16.05%. TFGcrowd is not joining my €2.5K club.

During December I didn’t invest in TFGcrowd. The platform clearly needs to improve some of the features and user experience capabilities. No news around TFGcrowd during December. I will try to research more.

I will need to research further, but the reality described above marks any deposit I make in TFGcrowd in the same manner as in Crowdestor: my speculative investments on the Savings4Freedom portfolio.

TFG Crowd Projects @ Savings4Freedom
Examples of projects currently available on TFGcrowd

The projects are interesting, based in the UK, that currently are facing some problems among their P2P lending platforms, but these particular projects look well structured and with good business rational.

TFGcrowd Updates

TFGcrowd Buyback Guarantee EXTRA

TFGcrowd announced during November their EXTRA buyback guarantee.

You already know about the TFGcrowd Buyback Guarantee Fund (that reached €129.868,10 on December 31st) for the projects market with Buyback Guarantee. They now announced to investors the setting up of TFGcrowd Buyback Guarantee EXTRA for all the projects currently open for investments on the TFGcrowd platform.

How will the Buyback Guarantee EXTRA work?

  • This buyback guarantee will be provided directly from TFGcrowd funds (not the Buyback Funds or the Loan Originator’s funds);
  • In case any of the borrowers of the projects currently open for investments on our platform defaults by 31st December 2020, TFGcrowd will secure repayment of the nominal value of the outstanding loan plus accrued interest income from their own funds. All investors will be compensated proportionately to their investments in a particular project;
  • It is deemed that a borrower has defaulted if the repayment of the particular loan is delayed by more than 60 days.

This is just another way to say that TFGcrowd will guarantee the investor funds, but if everything goes wrong, and TFGcrowd goes bankrupt, nothing will guarantee your money.

TFGcrowd Cashback & Bonus

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your TFGcrowd account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my TFGcrowd account here.



Mintos

Mintos @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 561.40€ invested in Mintos. I got 2.06€ in interest. Until now, Mintos IRR is 14.78%. Mintos is not joining my €2.5K club.

Mintos Returns @ Savings4Freedom
Mintos: A bad surprise in October with one of my secondary loans being marked as defaulted. Returns drop based on personal decisions.

I don’t expect more negative months, but my Mintos portfolio returns will remain small, especially in light of the update below.

The rise of alternatives that offer me higher profitability and control is only the tip of the rationale for my recent move to reduce my position.

Mintos Updates

Does Mintos have a Problem? Loan Originators issues…

On January 6th, FinsteinInvest published a relevant blog post for all people with investments on Mintos. You can find it here (use google translator).

“…I evaluated the ratio of the loans – in “on schedule” and “overdue”. I have defined all loans that are in arrears as past due; all from “Late 1-15″. I only looked at the € loans.”

FinsteinInvest Publication on Mintos

The conclusion is that around 50% of loans currently available on Mintos are delayed. And Mintos ratings don’t reflect this reality.

Check FinsteinInvest publication in order to read more details. A concerning reality that needs to be shared with everyone.

Mintos Cashback & Bonus

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Mintos you earn 0,5% on all investments over the first 90 days in cashback.

Check my Mintos account here.


Viventor

Viventor @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 500.45€ invested in Viventor. I got 115.23€ in interest. Until now, Viventor IRR is 12.61%. Viventor is not joining my €2.5K club.

Viventor Returns @ Savings4Freedom
Viventor: returns reached its hight in December. From now one, only small returns are possible.

Viventor is surprising me with the resilience of the monthly returns, even after multiple months of successive withdraws. December was the moment all my pending payments were paid, allowing me to reach my year goal.

Viventor Updates

Viventor: 10 EUR minimum withdrawal

Viventor announced that due to a growing investor base the costs for money transfers have also become significant. In order to decrease operational costs, Viventor introduced a 10 EUR minimal withdrawal amount restriction. 

Viventor: Pending Payments

Viventor is going to implement “pending payments” status for loans. It mentions that payments require usually 0 to 5 days from Loan Originators to reach investors’ accounts. Now that information will be visible.

Viventor Cashback & Bonus

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my Viventor account here.


iban Wallet

iban wallet @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 1,000.01€ invested in iban wallet. I got 150.27€ in interest plus referral bonus. Until now, iban wallet IRR is 12.01%. iban wallet is not joining my €2.5K club. I will keep my position at 1000€ as my iban wallet allocation goal (money that I can use in 2 business days).

iban Returns @ Savings4Freedom
iban Wallet: in December the only reason for the platform performance was Savings4Freedom readers contributions for opening new accounts. iban offers a low-interest rate but pays it daily with immediate liquidity of your funds, something that was very useful to me to access my funds quickly.

Once again, thanks to the Savings4Freedom community, multiple new users created accounts using my iban Wallet referral link and referral code RCARLOS3EG8D. Thank you so very much!

iban Wallet Updates

iban Wallet: Problems with Deposits

At the beginning of November, iban wallet changed their financial bank services provider from Santander to Lloyds, leading to some trouble with client transfers. I have experienced some delay in the recognition of transfers, but after some contacts with the support team by phone, I received a retroactive interest on the deposited funds.

iban Wallet: Accusations of Scam

Based on the deposit recognition issues experienced by platform investors during November and December, a significant number of bad reviews show up on Trustpilot and even some direct accusations to iban wallet as being a scam were made on Facebook.

All claims made on such publications are easily rebated by simply doing quick online research for all relevant data. It is relevant to highlight that in the current moment is important to keep a close eye regarding the operations of all P2P investment platforms, but also make sure that all information shared is based on facts.

iban Wallet should and must increase the information transparency regarding its Loan Originators partners. They should be quick to take this information public in order to avoid this type of accusation. I’m waiting for that as soon as possible.

iban Wallet: Guest Blog Publication

iban blog Post @ Savings4Freedom
My third post as an iban wallet guest writer about How Fintechs are broadening our Financial Services Industry access

iban Wallet addressed me an invitation to write as a guest writer in iban Wallet blog. The result of my third attempt was: “Savers First: How Fintechs are broadening our Financial Services Industry access“.

You can find the article here: Savers First

Please feel free to let me know in the comments below your opinion.

iban Wallet Cashback & Bonus

You can sign up and invest through my referral link you can join the iban Wallet referral program and get €25 for every invitee that invests more than €1000.

Make sure to add the referral code – RCARLOS3EG8D – when creating your account!

Special Savings4Freedom Blog Bonus: during December and January, every reader who joins iban Wallet will get a 3% interest rate on their iban Wallet account for 6 months by adding €300 or more using the code XMAS3.

Note: this is a bonus which has a minimum deposit amount to be activated, this code needs to be inserted after the registration process, in the top up the account step. 


iban bonus @ Savings4Freedom

Check my initial review on iban Wallet and details on my account here.



FastInvest

FastInvest @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, I have 2,019.30€ invested in FastInvest. I got 19.30€ in interest. Until now, FastInvest IRR is 11.52%. FastInvest is not joining my €2.5K club, in fact, I decided to close my position on the platform during 2020.

FastInvest Returns @ Savings4Freedom
Smooth performance of FastInvest returns in December

Smooth month in my FastInvest position. Small investment increment, small return increment. I like the user experience of the platform. I like their highly professional marketing approach, but I really don’t like the lack of transparency regarding loan originators.

For me, FastInvest has worked well. But there are too many stories (read here) around the company on these troubling times for me to keep investing.  I will keep you informed on this process over the next few months.

FastInvest Cashback & Bonus

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my FastInvest account here.


Kuetzal: A Fraud

Kuetzal @ Savings4Freedom

By the end of December 2019, the potential losses with Kuetzal are 3,045.04€. I supposedly got 45.04€ in interest. If I’m able to recover anything from Kuetzal, the IRR is 14.14%.

Fraud with Kuetzal loans. Kuetzal is a scam.

CRITICAL NOTE: In December 2019, it was made public a significant number of facts that undermine completely the credibility of Kuetzal as a reliable P2P platform.

You can learn more details on this scandal on the following blog posts:

Based on these facts and the lack of reply from Kuetzal, I decided to start withdrawing my funds from the platform. I will share here the progress on funds recovery if there is any.

I will start conversations with other investors in order to assess the viability to organize P2P investors into an association capable of protecting our interests and push for regulation and legal protections among political decision-makers.

During January I will mark my Kuetzal deposits as losses.

Kuetzal Returns @ Savings4Freedom
I will try to recover my funds from Kuetzal

Kuetzal Updates

Funds Recovery Tracking

On December 28th, I made my first withdraw request in the amount of 35.75€. Still no news.

Check my Kuetzal account here.



Robocash

Robocash @ Savings4Freedom

I closed my Robocash account last September.

Robocash launches commercial loans
from Singapore

Loans will be issued for a period of up to 12 months and listed on the platform in EUR.

Robocash Cashback & Bonus

If you sign up and invest through my referral link, you will get a %1 bonus on all your investments in Robocash during the first 3 months.

Check my Robocash account here.


Why in the future I will close my investment positions on these P2P Platforms?

PlatformLoan TypeAverage Annual Interest RateReason / Bonus & Cashback
BrickStarter Logo @ Savings4Freedom
Brickstarter
Real Estate~10%Low-interest rates for investment risk. No monthly repayment option or secondary market available. You are stuck until maturity.

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Brickstarter, add the Promo Code “BRICKS” to earn 15€ in cash bonus and 0,5% in cashback for your investments during the first 90 days
Housers Logo @ Savings4FreedomHousersReal Estate~7%Low-interest rates for investment risk. No monthly repayment option or secondary market available. You are stuck until maturity.

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Housers you earn 25€ in cash bonus 1 month after your first €50 investment. Add the promo code “PROMO AMIGO

Special October Cashback:
THE SPECIAL 50€ TELL A FRIEND PROMOTION IS BACK! instead of €25, you will get €50 if you create your account using the link above until 30.10.2019
Swaper Logo @ Savings4Freedom
Swaper
Consumer~12%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Lack of a stable source of loans over a long timeframe.

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Swaper you earn an extra 2% on all investments over the first 3 months (valid until 02.11.2019)
BitofProperty Logo @ Savings4Freedom
BitofProperty
Real Estate~7%Low-interest rates for investment risk. No monthly repayment option or secondary market available. You are stuck until maturity.

In case you employ my referral link to invest in BitofProperty you earn 10€ in cash bonus after your first investment
Lenndy logo @ Savings4Freedom
Lenndy
Consumer~12%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Significant delays in short-term loan repayment.

In case you employ my referral link to invest in Lenndy you earn 10€ in cash bonus after your first 100€ investment
EvoEstate Logo @ Savings4Freedom
EvoEstate
Real Estate~12%Great idea for beginner investors, but no significant value for more mature investors.

In case you employ my referral link to invest in EvoEstate you earn 15€ in cash bonus after your first investment
Finbee @ Savings4Freedom
FinBee
Consumer & Enterprise~22%Lack of investment protections. High defaults rate and hidden fees when selling loans.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my FinBee account here.
NeoFinance @ Savings4Freedom
NeoFinance
Consumer~20%Lack of investment protections. High defaults rate and incredible high hidden fees when selling loans. I truly don’t recommend inexperienced investors to choose this platform.

If you create an account and invest in NeoFinance using my referral link, you gain 25€ as a sign-up bonus.

Check my NeoFinance account here.
Monestro @ Savings4Freedom
Monestro
Consumer~20%Lack of investment protections. High defaults rate and hidden fees when selling loans.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my Monestro account here.
Crowdestate @ Savings4Freedom
Crowdestate
Enterprise & Real Estate~7%Recent delays in repayments. No buyback guarantee.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my Crowdestate account here.
BulkEstate @ Savings4Freedom
Bulkestate
Real Estate~11%No monthly repayment option or secondary market available. You are stuck until maturity.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my BulkEstate account here.
Ekassa @ Savings4Freedom
Ekassa
Consumer~12%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Significant delays in short-term loan repayment.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my Ekassa account here.
Peerberry @ Savings4Freedom
PeerBerry
Consumer~11%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Significant delays in short-term loan repayment.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

PeerBerry’s Loyalty program:
Silver: From 10 000 Eur of active investment portfolio (earn +0,5% for future investments)
Gold: From 25 000 Eur of active investment portfolio (earn +0,75% for future investments)
Platinum: From 40 000 Eur of active investment portfolio (earn +1% for future investments)

Check my PeerBerry account here.
DoFinance @ Savings4Freedom
DoFinance
Consumer~9%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Strict rules regarding investment periods that generate huge opportunity cost if not considered. Lack of transparency regarding the actual duration of the investments made.

If you sign up and invest through my referral link, you enjoy VIP status offer which gives an extra 1% yield on all your investments in DoFinance during the first 3 months.

Check my DoFinance account here.
EstateGuru @ Savings4Freedom
EstateGuru
Real Estate~11%Lower interest rates. No monthly repayment option or secondary market available. You are stuck until maturity.

If you sign up and invest through my referral link, you will get gain 0.5% cashback on every investment made on EstateGuru over the initial 3 months through my referral link.

Check my EstateGuru account here.
ViaInvest @ Savings4Freedom
ViaInvest
Consumer & Enterprise~9%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Significant delays in short-term loan repayment.

If you sign up and invest through my referral link, you will get €10 bonus after your first investment of €50 in ViaInvest.

Check my ViaInvest account here.
Reinvest24 @ Savings4Freedom
ReInvest24
Real Estate(undefined)Lack of returns for a significant timeframe. Low-interest rates for investment risk. No liquidity on assets.

Special September cashback for all investors using my referral link, valid from 9/9/2019 until 23.9.2019

Cashback % levels:
0,5% Cashback from total of 100 – 999 EUR gross investments
1% Cashback from total of 1000 – 9999 EUR gross investments 
1,5% Cashback from total of 10000 – 19999 EUR gross investments
2% Cashback from total of 20000 – 29999 EUR gross investments
2,5% Cashback from total of 30000 – 39999 EUR gross investments
3% Cashback from total of 40000 – … EUR gross investments

Check my ReInvest24 account here.
Debitum @ Savings4Freedom
Debitum Network
Crypto & Enterprise~10%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Significant delays in short-term loan repayment.

If you sign up and invest through my referral link, you will get €10 bonus after your first investment of €250 in Debitum.

Check my Debitum account here.
Flender @ Savings4Freedom
Flender
Enterprise~9%Low-interest rates for investment risk.

You can create a Flender account using this link and gain 5% cashback in all your investments for the first 120 days.
Rendity @ Savings4Freedom
Rendity
Real Estate~7%Low-interest rates for investment risk. High value for each investment, starting at €500.

You can create a Rendity account using this link and gain €25 as a sign-up bonus.
Profitus @ Savings4Freedom
Profitus
Real Estate~10%Low-interest rates for investment risk.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!
CoinLoan @ Savings4Freedom
Coinloan
Crypto~11%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Speculative since associated to crypto-assets.

You can create a Coinloan account using this link and gain 1% in cashback during the first 90 days.
BitBond @ Savings4Freedom
Bitbond
Crypto~13%Low-interest rates for investment risk. Speculative since associated with crypto-assets.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!
PrepayWay Logo @ Savings4Freedom
PrepayWay
Crypto(undefined)Still waiting for the P2P lending platform release.

You can check these conditions and join the InBit token sale using this link.
Bondora @ Savings4Freedom
Bondora
Not transparent(undefined)Lack of transparency.

No bonus for new investors, but you can create your account using my referral link and support the blog this way. Thank you!

Check my Bondora account here.

Now you understand the reason why I need to focus my P2P investments on fewer platforms!

Other Assets on Portfolio

Coinbase

Coinbase Returns and Assets Value @ Savings4Freedom

If you sign up and invest through my referral link, you will get €9 bonus after your first investment of €90 in Coinbase.

Check my Coinbase account here.

BullionVault

BullionVault Assets @ Savings4Freedom

You can create a BullionVault account using this link.

Check my BullionVault account here.


S4F Next Steps

I will start delivering on my commitments towards 2020. As always, the goal is to keep the capital secure and maximize my potential returns!

This is all about December 2019!

Thank you so much to all that are sharing opinions, comments, and suggestions with me over the email ([email protected]). I’m always looking for ways to improve the blog and my investment strategy.

If you enjoyed this post, please hit the like button below and/or share it with your friends. Thanks for the support!

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