Abundance Investment Reviews 

Antwoord van Abundance Investment

17 dec 2024

Hi Zimu,

Thank you for taking the time to leave a review. We're sorry to hear you've had a poor experience investing with us.

On Abundance you can choose to invest in two categories of investment - higher risk investments from companies, or lower risk investments from councils. You can read more about Abundance’s role in relation to our company investments here (https://help.abundanceinvestment.com/en/articles/3947968-our-role-over-the-life-of-an-investment) and our role in relation to council investments here (https://www.abundanceinvestment.com/legal/loan-disclosures).

We have always maintained rigorous due diligence procedures to ensure that the investments offered on our platform meet the highest standards of transparency, legality and financial sustainability - that level of due diligence has not changed. Our extensive due diligence is done in advance of a company raising funding through Abundance and typically takes months to complete. However our due diligence process does not mitigate the risks that can affect an investment - so we make sure there are clear risk warnings throughout the process of choosing to invest on Abundance.

There is no doubt that the last few years have been very challenging for many businesses, including those companies that have raised money on Abundance. We have seen those companies that had recently raised funding and were still building when the pandemic struck hit particularly hard. It was not so much the immediate challenges of the first lockdown, but those created by subsequent lockdowns and the aftermath as economies around the world got back to work – leading to severe shortages of some materials and labour, in turn driving higher prices (sometimes 20-30% higher and more). Russia’s war in Ukraine and Brexit added to rising prices (the war particularly impacted energy prices) giving no reprieve to those companies already hit by the constraints the pandemic created. Investors in those companies have unfortunately suffered as a result.

We have worked, and will continue to, to support all of the companies funded on Abundance that have struggled in recent years, but our role is limited. As an investment platform only, our role once an investment has closed is largely an administrative one, and we do not manage the businesses or have a direct oversight role. Please get in touch with our support team if you have any questions about your investments and the current status of returning money to investors.

Kind regards,
The Abundance Team

Antwoord van Abundance Investment

19 sep 2024

Hi Elizabeth,

We do have a questionnaire that you need to complete before making a new investment, to ensure you understand the type of investment and risks involved. You don’t have to take the test every time you invest, but we may need you to occasionally retake the test.

The test is a requirement from the Financial Conduct Authority as part of the regulatory rules that apply to the types of investment we offer, and it applies to all investors no matter how much they are thinking of investing. Unfortunately we therefore can’t let you invest without passing our investor questionnaire.

We appreciate it can be frustrating to fail the test, particularly if you are only looking to invest a small amount and feel like you understand the investment. We are strong believers that you should be able to invest no matter how much money you have to invest, which is why we have a low minimum investment of just £5, however it’s important to make sure you understand the key features and risks of our investments before you invest, no matter how much you are considering investing.

I will follow up with you by email to see if we can do anything else to help.

Kind regards,
The Abundance Team

Antwoord van Abundance Investment

11 sep 2024

Hi Brian,

Thanks for taking the time to provide feedback on Abundance and the changes to our online platform - sorry to hear you don't like the changes.

You'll find a list of all the transactions in your account, including investment returns received, in the Statement section. Please get in touch directly with our support team at support@abundanceinvestment.com or through the on site messenger if you need help navigating your account following the changes.

We are taking on board the feedback from our customers following the changes to our platform and we will be working with our new technology provider to continue to improve the platform and deliver new features over time.

The Abundance Team