Regular readers will be aware of Money&Co.’s close relationship with the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF), part of the University of Cambridge.
Our friends at Crowdfundinsider report that CCAF has launched a new public-private collaboration involving banks, public agencies, and private organizations aiming to provide insight into the emerging digital asset ecosystem. The mission is to help guide public opinion, inform regulation and policy discussion, as well as support evidence-based decision-making by individuals and institutions globally.
CCAF is the leading, global research entity engaging with the Fintech sector. The Centre has produced many reports providing both quantitative data and perspective on the digital transformation of finance. Since its inception, CCAF has collaborated with more than 120 regulatory authorities and central banks worldwide on Fintech regulation and regulatory innovation research.
According to a statement distributed by CCAF, the multi-year Cambridge Digital Assets Programme (CDAP) launches with 16 institutional research collaborators to create open-access datasets and tools to inform digital public dialogue and decision-making various areas including, crypto-assets (digital assets), infrastructure and the environment,
Initially, during a 2 year period, CCAF will collaborate with public and private organizations to create the empirical data, tools, and insights necessary to facilitate an evidence-based public dialogue about the growing digital asset ecosystem.
The CDAP’s institutional research partners include:
Historical Performance And IFISA Process Guide
That figure is the result of over £24 million of loans facilitated on the site, as we bring individuals looking for a good return on capital together with carefully vetted small companies seeking funds for growth. Bear in mind that lenders’ capital is at risk. Read warnings on site before committing capital.
All loans on site are eligible to be held in a Money&Co. Innovative Finance Individual Savings Account (IFISA), up to the annual ISA limit of £20,000. Such loans offer lenders tax-free income. Our offering is an Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) that can hold the peer-to-peer (P2P) business loans that Money&Co. facilitates. For the purposes of this article, the terms ISA and IFISA are interchangeable.
So here’s our guide to the process:
The ISA allowance for 2020/21 is unchanged from last tax year at £20,000, allowing a married couple to put £40,000 into a tax-free environment. Over three years, an investment of this scale in two Money&Co. Innovative Finance ISAs would generate £8,400 of income completely free of tax. We’re assuming a 7 per cent return, net of charges and free of tax here.
Once you have made your initial commitment, you might then consider diversifying – buying a spread of loans. To do this, you can go into the “loans for sale” market. All loans bought in this market also qualify for IFISA tax benefits.
Risk: Security, Access, Yield
Do consider not just the return, but the security and the ease of access to your investment. We write regularly about these three key factors. Here’s one of several earlier articles on security, access and yield.