2023 alternative investment outlook

Risk summary for investments in speculative illiquid securities which are arranged by a firm by way of an online platform.

Estimated reading time: 2 min

Due to the potential for losses, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) considers this investment to be very complex and high risk.

What are the key risks?

You could lose all the money you invest
- By investing into a real estate project through Shojin you will be investing in a Bond instrument issued by Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV’s) which provide a funding facility for the purpose of real estate development. If the project fails, Investors can lose some or all of the money they invested.
- Advertised rates of return aren’t guaranteed. This is not a savings account. If the project doesn’t pay the SPV back as agreed, you could earn less money than expected or nothing at all. A higher advertised rate of return means a higher project risk with an increased probability of losing your money.
- Due Diligence and project oversight is carried out by the platform on each Shojin project that you are investing into to assess how well they are expected to perform. However, you should always also do your own research before investing.
- These investments are sometimes held in an Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA). While any potential gains from your investment will be tax free, you can still lose all your money. An IFISA does not reduce the risk of the investment or protect you from losses.
You are unlikely to be protected if something goes wrong
- Protection from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS), in relation to claims against failed regulated firms, does not cover poor investment performance. Try the FSCS investment protection checker here.
- Protection from the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) does not cover poor investment performance. If you have a complaint against an FCA regulated firm, FOS may be able to consider it. Learn more about FOS protection here.
You are unlikely to get your money back quickly
- This type of property investment could face delays that can delay payments. These investments could also fail altogether and be unable to repay investors their money.
- You have the opportunity to sell your investment early through the secondary market but there is no guarantee you will be able to find someone willing to buy.
This is a complex investment
- This investment has a complex structure to ensure the interest of investors is protected. Investments are made into each designated project SPV and are ringfenced from other project SPV's to ensure full transparency of each investment made.
- You may wish to get financial advice to understand how the structure works before deciding to invest.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
- Putting all your money into a single business or type of investment for example, is risky. Spreading your money across different investments makes you less dependent on any one to do well.
- A good rule of thumb is not to invest more than 10% of your money in high-risk investments.

If you are interested in learning more about how to protect yourself, visit the FCA’s website here.

For further information about minibonds, visit the FCA’s website here.

Close

A third of UK retail investors (33%) are more inclined to look beyond traditional investment assets amid concerns over the government’s economic policy
Recessionary fears are increasing the appeal of alternative assets for 30% of investors
60% say it is hard to determine the best way to gain access to alternative investments

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About Shojin

Shojin is an FCA-regulated online real estate investment platform that lowers the barriers to entry for individuals across the globe looking to access institutional-grade real estate investment opportunities in the UK.

About the research

The market research was carried out between 17th and 22nd November 2022 among 2,000 UK adults via an online survey by independent market research agency Opinium - a member of the Market Research Society (MRS) Company Partner Service, whose code of conduct and quality commitment it strictly adheres to. Its MRS membership means that it adheres to strict guidelines regarding all phases of research, including research design and data collection; communicating with respondents; conducting fieldwork; analysis and reporting; data storage. The data sample of 2,000 UK adults is fully nationally representative. This means the sample is weighted to ONS criteria so that the gender, age, social grade, region and city of the respondents corresponds to the UK population as a whole. Within this sample, 721 respondents had investment portfolios worth in excess of £10,000 – this includes all assets from bonds and currencies to commodities and stocks and shares but excludes any savings, pensions and property that is used as their primary residency.

Published

28 November 2022

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