14th January 2021
Since becoming one of the first platforms to be directly regulated by the FCA, in October 2014, and one of the first to be authorised as an Innovative Finance ISA manager, Crowd2Fund has always approached its regulatory obligations with the utmost respect. This careful consideration and acknowledgement of the importance of good regulation and compliance help to protect investors and grow the UK FinTech industry.
In light of the dramatic shock to the economic landscape and the enforced shutdown of 80% of UK businesses, Crowd2Fund made the decision early on to use the time during lockdown to re-enforce its compliance procedures, strengthen the wider platform proposition and support the businesses throughout the crisis.
You will notice that when we re-launch soon, there will be a new investor onboarding journey, through which investors will be asked a series of questions to validate their understanding of the platform and investment products, before being able to log in. The user journey for this step has been carefully designed to ensure that it is as painless and as informative as possible.
This new feature will allow us to profile investors accurately and, therefore, ensure that their platform experience is tailored to their needs whilst clearly informing them about the possible risks of investing via Crowd2Fund.
We have reviewed every aspect of the business from a regulatory perspective. This has included looking at the internal procedures of the platform, the way we present opportunities, financial marketing promotions, pricing of investments, management of deal flow and third party suppliers, amongst many other elements. We hope to ensure that Crowd2Fund over-delivers on its regulatory obligations which is an approach that has been born into the company culture since its inception. Ultimately, good platform compliance allows us to deliver a better service for both businesses and investors in the long-term.
Having compliance as a founding principle of Crowd2Fund ensures that we continue to have a stable foundation to help grow and scale our businesses. Having to adapt in a post-COVID19 economy, Crowd2Fund has chosen to maximise its efforts towards following regulatory obligations, especially as we seek to secure our new proposed partnership with various UK Government departments and introduce our new range of financial products.
Chris Hancock, Founder and CEO said:
“Compliance and a good regulatory ecosystem have always been core to the UK’s FinTech industry. We will continue to work with our team and partners to deliver world-class financial technology services while leveraging the benefits of a fantastic UK FinTech sector, powered by an effective, innovative and a suitable regulatory regime.”
Crowd2Fund is planning its relaunch in July which will be spearheaded with its Reboot Britain campaign to help get the UK economy going again.
Risk warning:
Past performance and forecasts are not reliable indicators of future results. Tax treatment of any of the investment offers will depend on the individual circumstances of each investor and may be subject to change in the future. If you are unsure about any aspect of the information provided by the company, you should seek advice from an independent financial adviser. Do not invest more than you can afford to lose. Investing in start-ups and early-stage businesses involves risks, including illiquidity, lack of dividends, loss of investment and dilution, and it should be done only as part of a diversified portfolio. Investing in start-ups may expose the individual concerned to a significant risk of losing all of the money or other assets invested. Peer to business lending through Crowd2Fund is not the same as holding a bank or building society savings account. When making a peer to business loan, your capital lent to a borrower is not covered for compensation in the event of a loss by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. It may prove impossible to recover all or part of the loan by calling in the business assets held as security on that loan. Reward and Donation funding types are not regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority Crowd2Fund Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FRN 623683). Crowd2Fund Limited is registered in England and Wales. Registered No. 08472687 Registered Address: 242 Acklam Road, London, W10 5JJ.
