
doi: 10.2139/ssrn.1352352
Online Peer-to-Peer lending platforms claim to be beneficial for both borrowers and lenders by eliminating expensive intermediaries and reducing transaction costs. However, are the often inexperienced lenders who operate in a pseudonymous online environment with potentially significant information asymmetries really able to obtain an attractive return on their investment? This paper discusses the question by presenting profitability data from the US platform Prosper. Although the overall investment performance has not been satisfactory for most rating categories, it is shown that following some simple investment rules improves profitability of a portfolio and leads to acceptable returns for all credit rating categories with exception of the high-risk one.
| selected citations These citations are derived from selected sources. This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | 56 | |
| popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network. | Top 10% | |
| influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | Top 10% | |
| impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network. | Average |
