Investing in P2P Loans: 9 Years of Portfolio Lessons in 2026
An honest look back at 9 years of P2P investing: real numbers, the 2020 and 2022 crises, lessons learned and a current portfolio yielding 10.8%.
This article is different: not a theoretical overview but an honest review of 9 years of investing in P2P loans — with real numbers, mistakes, moments of crisis and the things I would do differently today.
1. How I started investing in P2P loans in 2016
In 2016 I was looking for an alternative to instant-access savings accounts. The key interest rate was zero, my passbook was paying 0.01%. I came across an article about Mintos and was immediately curious: 12% returns? It sounded too good to be true.
I started cautiously: €500 on Mintos. I configured Auto-Invest, made buyback guarantee a mandatory criterion and waited. After 30 days: €4.80 in interest. Annualised: 11.5% p.a. It worked.
Today, 9 years later, I have invested across 5 platforms, survived two crises (the COVID-19 crisis in 2020 and Russia-related defaults in 2022) and learned more along the way than from any book about P2P investing.
2. The timeline: highs and lows 2016–2025
2016
The start. €500 on Mintos. Return: 11.5%. Everything runs smoothly. I top up to €2,000.
2017
Diversification. Bondora joins the portfolio. Returns on both platforms: 10–12%. I am thrilled and keep adding capital.
2018
Bondora Go & Grow launches. The new product offers 6.75% with daily liquidity — a perfect liquidity buffer. I put €1,500 into it.
2019
Best year. Return on Mintos: 12.9%. Total portfolio return: roughly 11%. I add PeerBerry.
2020
COVID shock. Mintos freezes payouts from several lenders. Bondora caps withdrawals at €400/month. Several loan originators go insolvent. Portfolio value drops. Mintos return: -1.3%. My biggest takeaway: a few eggs in many baskets.
2021
Recovery. Mintos starts cleaning up the portfolio. Returns slowly climb back to 6.8%. I reduce exposure to riskier lenders.
2022
War in Ukraine & Russian defaults. Lenders with Russian exposure default. I lose about €180 across three positions on Mintos. Return: 8.7%. Lesson: geopolitics is a real risk.
2023
Stabilisation. Portfolio cleaned up. Mintos becomes EU-regulated, launches new products (bonds, ETFs). Return: 10.5%. I add Estateguru for real estate diversification.
2024
Strong year. Total portfolio return: 11.2%. All platforms deliver consistently. Trade Republic cuts rates to 3% — making P2P more attractive again.
2025
2025 so far. Bondora drops its return to 6%. Mintos introduces fees for Custom Loans. The portfolio runs steadily at 10–11%. The industry is more mature than ever.
3. My current portfolio in 2025
This is what my P2P portfolio looks like today — after 9 years of experience and two crises:
| Platform | Share | Return | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mintos Core Loans | 35% | 9.1% | Since 2016 |
| Bondora Go & Grow | 20% | 6.0% | Liquidity buffer |
| PeerBerry | 25% | 11.0% | Since 2019 |
| Estateguru | 20% | 10.5% | Property-backed loans |
Total return 2024: 10.8% p.a. · Total allocation: approx. 8% of my overall portfolio · Time invested: around 30 minutes per month
4. The 7 most important lessons from 9 years of P2P
01 Diversification saves portfolios
Those who put everything on Mintos in 2020 suffered. Those who diversified across three or more platforms slept better. Never hold more than 30–40% on a single platform.
02 Buyback guarantees are useful, but not bulletproof
A guarantee is only as strong as the entity behind it. In 2020, many investors learned that once the loan originator goes insolvent, the guarantee dies with it.
03 Regular reviews are a must
P2P is not a “set and forget” asset class — at least not when it comes to custom loans. Checking the dashboard once a month protects you from nasty surprises.
04 Only invest money you do not need
2020: I needed short-term liquidity. Bondora limited withdrawals. Since then, three months of net salary always sit in an instant-access account.
05 Regulation is critical
Platforms with an EU licence performed significantly better in 2020 and 2022 than unregulated peers. I now only invest in platforms supervised by financial regulators such as the EFSA or BaFin.
06 Plan for tax from day one
In my first year I forgot about tax. The back-payment was painful. Today, I mentally set aside 25% of every interest credit.
07 Patience is rewarded
Those who panic-sold in 2020 locked in losses. Those who stayed the course saw the recovery. P2P rewards patience — short-term thinking punishes you.
5. My biggest mistakes
Mistake 1: too much concentration on Mintos in 2019
At the peak, 70% of my P2P capital was on Mintos. When the defaults hit in 2020, the shock was real. Today: a maximum of 35% on any single platform.
Mistake 2: not excluding Russian lenders early enough
That cost me €180 in 2022. I had underestimated geopolitical risk. Today I actively filter custom loans by lender country and exclude high-risk regions.
Mistake 3: not downloading annual reports on time
Some platforms delete historical reports after a while. I had to export transaction data manually, which was painful. Today: automatic download on 1 January every year.
6. What I would do differently today
- Diversify across more platforms sooner — instead of staying focused on Mintos for three years
- Use Bondora Go & Grow from day one as a liquidity buffer rather than locking all P2P money into committed products
- Tax tracking from day one — a simple Excel sheet is enough
- Do not fall for advertised yields above 14% — most of those platforms no longer exist in 2025
- Add property-backed loans earlier — Estateguru is more collateralised and more stable than consumer loans
Risk warning: These experiences are personal and do not guarantee similar results. P2P loans are risky — past returns are no indicator of future performance.
FAQ
How long have you been investing in P2P loans?
Since 2016 — 9 years. I have lived through two major crises (2020 and 2022) and stuck with it. The average return across all years is 9.4% p.a. net of defaults.
Did you lose money in the COVID crisis?
On paper, yes — the portfolio value dropped in 2020 due to frozen loans. In real terms I lost about €220 from defaulted loan originators on Mintos. That was around 2.8% of my P2P capital at the time — painful, but manageable thanks to diversification.
Would you start with P2P from scratch today?
Yes — but with more experience. I would immediately spread investments across three platforms (Bondora for liquidity, Mintos for yield, Estateguru for security), never invest more than 8% of total wealth, and run tax tracking from day one.
Risk warning: This is a personal experience report. Past returns do not guarantee future results. P2P loans can lead to total loss. This is not investment advice. As of April 2025.