Women are still less likely to invest in P2P, says Robo.cash

WOMEN are still far less likely to invest in peer-to-peer loans, according to Latvian platform Robo.cash.

Research from the P2P payday lender has found that just eight per cent of its investors are women.

“While fintech and alternative lending have significantly developed in a decade and are considered to provide huge and equal opportunities for men and women, our own figures show that women are still less likely to invest,” said Robo.cash.

However, women do make larger investments than their male counterparts. The average size of men’s investments is €1,900 (£1,700), while women on average invest €2,700.

Read more: Robo.cash attracts £1.3m in six months

According to the Robo.cash research, women usually tend to consider investing in their 30s or 40s and hold 12 per cent of the investment volume made on the platform.

Hungary has the largest share of women investors on the platform with 33 per cent, followed by 23 per cent from Lithuania and 29 per cent from Slovenia.

“The reason why women shy away from investments can be explained by lack of money which is available to be invested and exposed to risks, that is partially caused by the gender pay gap and the necessity to manage household finance and lack of knowledge of the finance market,” said Robo.cash.

Read more: Robo.cash loan book hits £2.5m in first year

“However, as women are growing experienced and aware of the opportunities, they are getting more involved in the financial industry and catching up with male counterparts in their 30s and 40s.

“Despite the difference in numbers and volumes, men and women invest in nearly the same manner. The most of the investors of Robo.cash prefer to diversify assets by investing in parts of loans rather than financing single loans in full.”

Read more: Millennials dominate European P2P lending