Limiting the carbon footprint of your savings has never yielded so much… For around ten years, certain participatory financing platforms, or crowdfunding, such as Enerfip, Lendosphere, Lumo or even Lendopolis, have offered individuals the opportunity to invest in projects linked to the energy transition. Main sector targeted: renewable energies – solar, photovoltaic, wind, etc. Also concerned, although more marginally, are energy renovation operations in buildings, or even energy efficiency in industry. Supported by ambitious national and European public policies, these areas of activity are experiencing strong dynamics.
The saver finances these projects, handpicked by the platforms, in the form of a loan for a few years and is offered attractive remuneration in exchange. At Lendosphere, for example, the investment runs over two to six years and the average rate of loans made since the start of the year amounts to 7.16%. “We have passed on the rise in rates since last September, which allowed us to increase the yield offered to subscribers by two points,” explains Laure Verhaeghe, co-founder and president of Lendosphere.
A booming collection
Last year, this very specific segment of crowdfunding collected 324 million euros, according to the barometer produced by the professional association Financing Participatif France and GreenUnivers. A figure which jumped 75% in one year. And the trend is not about to run out of steam. The Enerfip platform thus claims a record collection of 100 million euros over the first nine months of the year. “We could do two or three times more, without difficulty in investing behind it given the volume of existing projects,” underlines Julien Hostache, president and co-founder of Enerfip.
Selectivity remains essential to avoid reimbursement difficulties. But the default rates displayed by these players are close to zero so far. “The companies that we finance are little affected by the increase in costs linked to inflation since energy is at the heart of it and they can therefore raise their prices,” points out Laure Verhaeghe.
However, it is better to adopt a cautious approach by diversifying your investments across several projects and platforms. A precautionary principle favored by a minimal entry ticket: from 10 to 100 euros, depending on the intermediary selected.