You may be familiar with the term ISA i.e. a tax-free Individual Savings Account, but did you know what an IFISA was?

IFISA stands for Innovative Finance Individual Savings Account and covers newish ways of investing and earning interest, such as Peer 2 Peer Lending and Crowdfunding.

IFISA is a form of saving and earning interest, which has been growing hugely in popularity since it was introduced back in 2016/17. In fact, the number of IFISA accounts have grown from 7,200 in the first year to 31,000 in the following 12 months. So why the exponential growth?

Probably the biggest reason for the surge in people signing up for an IFISA is the higher rates of interest that can be achieved. Then there is the fact that IFISAs aren’t affected by the wider economic and political climate i.e. Brexit and the Bank of England interest rate (unlike a Stocks and Shares ISA, for instance). This makes them less volatile and more consistent i.e. you’ll know your expected return from the start.

Furthermore, IFISAs are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Unlike banks and building societies, they aren’t part of the Financial Compensation Scheme. However, you’ll find that most IFISAs have their own ‘security fund’, which is used in the event a loan repayment falls through or the company itself goes bust.

Benefits of an IFISA

The biggest benefit of an IFISA is the fact you can invest and make money which won’t be taxed. With a Peer2Peer online lending platform you’re actually lending the money you put in and what you receive back is your money plus interest.

In the case of our own Peer2Peer lending platform here at Sourced, your investment takes the form of loans for property projects. You will know exactly what those projects are and what your money is being used for. Ideally your investment will cover a range of projects (diversity being key to successful returns since you’re not ‘putting all your eggs in one basket’).

Transfer or set up an IFISA with Sourced

It’s easy to set up an IFISA online with ourselves. You can also transfer an existing IFISA free of charge. In return, you can look forward to earning up to 12 per cent pa tax-free on your investment. The latter will be secured against a property project/s in the UK and can be worth up to £20,000 tax-free.

It takes two minutes to set up an account at Sourced. Simply go to Sourced Capital and fill in your details. Next take a look at our live projects via the site and then choose which ones you would like to invest in. Once you’ve done that you can transfer money to your online wallet and get started.

Now that you’ve invested all you have to do next is sit back and wait for those high interest-earning financial returns. You can then withdraw your cash with interest, or reinvest to earn even more via your Peer2Peer lending account with us. It really is that easy – and potentially lucrative!