Loans online - borrow from your mates

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4334391.stm

The launch of an eBay-style banking website this week, where users lend to and borrow from each other, is the latest step in what is being seen as a quiet consumer revolution.

http://zopa.com/ZopaWeb/

Appears to have been started up by a lot of ex-Egg employees.
Uk registered company.

Will be interesting to see how this develops.

[Shaun]

Intresting yes, but I'll not be using them. http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...717#post345717

[punky]

Its interesting, but it would really need to have insurance built into it, so if any borrowers default, then the insurers make up the difference.

I know banks will buy bad debts off you, but at terrible rates,

Originally Posted by dellwear

Intresting yes, but I'll not be using them. http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/...717#post345717

That's only from a borrower's perspective. Although a later poster then gives his take on it from an lender's perspective, coming up with roughly the same answer. lol.

Despite the fact that it looks like it doesn't work, it must do for someone. And since its a financial 'market', I guess it will be the middle men (who they say they have cut out!) i.e. Zopa.

The way they spread a lender's money over 50 or so borrowers might lower the risk etc. but it also means that it takes longer for the lender's money to get into the system. Meanwhile the money is sitting in Zopa's accounts, where I'm sure it's working for them.