Question 1

Who is Co-Funding LTD?

Accepted Answer

We are an innovative Fintech (Financial Technology) developer with a keen interest in building great product to meet markets needs in investment and automation.

Question 2

Do I have to be a company to license Co-Funding?

Accepted Answer

You can license the platform as an individual or as a company.

Question 3

What is and why do I need to undergo AML and KYC checks?

Accepted Answer

AML is “Anti-Money Laundering” checks and KYC is “Know Your Client” checks which are standard across financial service products. To align with the regulatory framework for the use of financial products, Co-Funding is obligated to verify identity in order to prevent money laundering.

Question 4

Can I still licence Co-Funding if I/my company does not pass AML/KYC checks?

Accepted Answer

No, AML and KYC checks are required to comply with financial service regulation and to keep you and your investors compliant

Question 5

When I licence the platform do I get training on how to use it and how to maintain regulatory compliant?

Accepted Answer

Co-Funding will provide the required training on how to operate the platform and remain compliant in its use.

Question 6

How can I contact Co-Funding?

Accepted Answer

You can contact us using the options available on our web site, which include the contact form, social media, live chat or contact number

Question 7

Is Co-Funding available to license outside of the UK?

Accepted Answer

No, the current version is designed specifically for the UK and UK based investors. Our future roadmap will consider expanding into other markets.

Question 8

What is Co-Funding’s Investor Platform?

Accepted Answer

The Co-Funding Investor Platform is investment automation software. It is designed to enable property developers to fully automate the funding of investments into designated and published property projects. It is specially designed to help manage private investor networks through a custom designed dashboard where you publish details of your projects for review by your investors and from where they can directly invest … all in one convenient place.

Question 9

Can I use my Platform license for more than one company?

Accepted Answer

No, a platform license and all legal contracts are bound to a legal entity whether that is an individual, a company or a company group linked by shareholding. This is fundamental to remaining FCA compliant and within the exemption to Article 25.
Refer to FAQ “Is using the Co-Funding platform software categorised as a FCA regulated activity?”.
Refer to FAQ “Does Co-Funding support SPV (special purpose vehicle) companies?”

Question 10

Can I use my Co-Funding platform subscription to manage investments on behalf of others?

Accepted Answer

No, in order to remain FCA compliant with the exemption to Article 25, set out in Article 28 of the Regulated Activities Order the licensed individual or company must be “arranging the transactions/projects to which they are also a party”. For this reason using the Co-Funding platform in this way breaches its “Terms of Use” policy.
Refer to FAQ “Is using the Co-Funding platform software categorised as a FCA regulated activity?”.

Question 11

Does Co-Funding support SPV (special purpose vehicle) companies?

Accepted Answer

Yes, but the Co-Funding licence holder, whether individual or company, MUST have a direct shareholding in the SPV and must be a party to the transaction/project in order to remain FCA compliant and to comply with the Co-Funding license “Terms of Use” policy.

Question 12

What is the difference between Co-Funding and Crowdfunding platforms?

Accepted Answer

There are significant differences in regulation, licensing and the use of the different platform types. Co-Funding has been custom designed with the sole intention of providing an automation platform that allows property developers to easily manage and grow their private investor networks while saving the time and cost associated with manually managing investment, bridging or commercial finance. Crowdfunding platforms require full FCA registration or affiliation that comes with significant operating costs if your requirement is for software to manage and automate investment involving private investors.

Question 13

Can I use Co-Funding as a Peer-to-Peer or Crowd funding service?

Accepted Answer

No, Co-Funding has not been designed to support peer-to-peer or crowdfunding use cases and using the platform to fund projects you do not have a direct stake in is in contravention of FCA regulations and does not comply with Co-Funding’s “Terms of Use”.

Question 14

Can I advertise my Co-Funding projects on the web or on social media?

Accepted Answer

No, this is defined as solicitation and requires you to be FCA regulated. It is also incompatible with how Co-Funding has been designed in order to maintain compliance with FCA regulations and would contravene Co-Funding’s “Terms of Use”.

Question 15

How do I subscribe to Co-Funding?

Accepted Answer

To learn more or subscribe to Co-Funding, you can contact us using the options available on our web site, which include the contact form, social media, live chat or contact number.

Question 16

Can I invite anybody to register as an investor?

Accepted Answer

The platform does not restrict who you invite to your platform instance, however as with any investments there are regulatory compliance and legal risk to consider when sending invitations. As a private investment platform, we highly recommend you meet potential investors and discuss how your business works before sending a personal invitation.

Question 17

How many projects can I list or have active at a time?

Accepted Answer

There is no restriction on the number of projects that can be listed in the platform dashboard.

Question 18

How much interest do I have to pay my investors?

Accepted Answer

Interest rates on investments is something you decide either when doing project financial analysis, or by simply agreeing the rate with your investors.

Question 19

What if a project I have published runs late?

Accepted Answer

Finance agreement have been created with a level of date line flexibility, the detail of which you must be aware of in order not to breach contract with your investor. The most important things are to be fully aware of your contracted obligations and under all circumstances keep your channels of communication open with your investors no matter how difficult the circumstances.

Question 20

Do I have to contact my investors directly for each new project?

Accepted Answer

This is one of the key benefits of Co-Funding, once your investors are registered they are permanently connected to your investor platform. Investor notifications keep them continuously updated on running projects and when you publish new ones. They will be able to invest, digitally sign legal documents and transfer pledged funds without any direct contact required.

Question 21

Is Co-Funding’s finance agreements legally binding?

Accepted Answer

Co-Funding finance agreements have been drawn up by our UK based legal experts and are consistent with UK Law.

Question 22

Do I need to pay solicitors to complete finance agreements?

Accepted Answer

This is a key benefit of Co-Funding’s platform. For standard debt, debt secured, equity and sharia agreements there is no need to get solicitors involved in the finance agreements. Our agreements are designed for property investments and are completed with the requisite information at the point an investor pledges to a project. The contract is then digitally signed without the need to get solicitors involved thus saving you significant amounts of time and legal fees.

Question 23

What if my investors want to seek legal advice?

Accepted Answer

The platform provides all investors the opportunity to download legal agreements and seek legal advice from their own solicitors before signing if they chose to do so.

Question 24

What happens with legal agreements if a project that is funded needs to be cancelled?

Accepted Answer

The finance agreements cater for this eventuality and allow you to cancel a project, however depending on the timing and the type of contract you and your investor have entered into you may still have interest payment liabilities on top oif the investment return. It is essential that you familiarise yourself with the standard platform contracts and the associated constraints and limitations.

Question 25

Is using the Co-Funding platform software categorised as a FCA regulated activity?

Accepted Answer

Yes, operating a software platform to automate the process for investors investing into property is a regulated activity, falling within Article 25 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) Order 2001 (“the Regulated Activities Order”) “Arranging deals in investments”. However, where a company or its agent arranges an investment into its own securities (debt, equities or sharia) it falls within an exemption to Article 25, set out in Article 28 of the Regulated Activities Order (“Arranging transactions to which the arranger is a party”).

Question 26

Do I need to register with the UK ICO as a data processor?

Accepted Answer

Yes, the collection and storage of investor data will require you to register with the ICO as a data processor.

Question 27

Do I need to register with the FCA?

Accepted Answer

Using the Co-Funding as designed will not require FCA registration or affiliation to operate the platform.

Question 28

Do I / my company have to be a party to the investment transaction /project?

Accepted Answer

Yes, this is required if you are to remain within the FCA compliance framework and aligned with Co-Funding’s “Terms of Use”..

Question 29

Is Co-Funding’s platform secure?

Accepted Answer

The platform has been designed from the start with security at it’s core. Your platform data is secure and not accessible from outside the platform. Changing personal contact information requires 2 factor authentication in the change process.

Question 30

What if I forget my password?

Accepted Answer

The login page has a “Forgot password” option should you have forgotten your password. Select this option and follow the instructions.

Question 31

What if my login information is compromised?

Accepted Answer

If you are concerned your login details have been compromised you should log in to the platform immediately and change your password. If you are unable to access the platform or reset your password you should use one of our communication channels to contact us immediately.

Question 32

Is money safe and transaction processing secure in the Platform?

Accepted Answer

We have taken considerable care in selecting our payments provider, MANGOPAY. They are an authorised Electronic Money Institution (EMI), licensed and regulated in Luxembourg and regulated in the UK by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The Co-Funding platform is fully integrated into MANGOPAY’S payment eco-system from where all transaction and funds are managed.

Investors are in full control of their funds while it is in their investor accounts and can effortlessly transfer between the platform account and their own platform registered bank account. The platform subscriber (developer) has no access to investor account funds until the investor has pledged to a project, digitally signed an investment agreement and committed the funds by way of transfer.

Question 33

What types of loan agreements does Co-Funding support?

Accepted Answer

Co-Funding has finance agreements that cover Debt, Debt Secured, Equity and Sharia-compliant investments.

Question 34

What are e-money and payment services?

Accepted Answer

When you pay money via our platform, MANGOPAY holds the funds in a secure account and creates an equivalent amount of e-money, which is credited to your e-wallet on our platform. When you receive money on our platform via MANGOPAY, we collect e-money on your behalf in your e-wallet.

While this may sound similar to what a bank does when funds are received into a current account, MANGOPAY is not a bank. Therefore, MANGOPAY does not take your money as a deposit to use for its own purposes or to lend to other customers. Furthermore, your e-money is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)

Question 35

How does MANGOPAY protect your money?

Accepted Answer

To ensure your money is secure, MANGOPAY follows a process known as safeguarding, which is a regulatory requirement for all EMIs. In this process, MANGOPAY keeps your money separate and places it in a safeguarding account with a credit institution (a bank). MANGOPAY’s safeguarding obligations are assessed every year by an independent expert, and the report confirming that it complies with the regulations is available to the FCA on request. In the event of MANGOPAY going out of business, an insolvency practitioner would be appointed to return the funds it has safeguarded to you.

Question 36

How does FSCS cover differ from safeguarding?

Accepted Answer

FSCS protects consumers, small businesses, limited companies and charities (that meet its eligibility criteria) when certain authorised financial services firms, including banks, fail and cannot return your money to you. FSCS is a service funded by the financial service firms that it covers. FSCS provides compensation only up to £85,000 per eligible person per licence holder. This means that if you have money in multiple accounts with banks, building societies or credit unions that are part of the same group (and share the same banking licence), the FSCS will treat them as one bank. By comparison, the full value of safeguarded funds held in an e-wallet (minus administrative costs applied by the insolvency practitioner) will be returned to you in the event that MANGOPAY goes out of business. Because of the insolvency procedure, it may take longer for your money to be returned to you when compared to an FSCS claim. You can find more information about using a non-bank payment service provider on the FCA’s website.

Question 37

Can I use the platform to raise investment funding not specific to a project?

Accepted Answer

No, collective investing or the simple raising of general finance is not FCA compliant with the exemption to Article 25, set out in Article 28 of the Regulated Activities Order the licensed individual or company must be “arranging the transactions/projects to which they are also a party” and therefore is not supported on the platform.

Question 38

Can I choose where to allocate investment funds?

Accepted Answer

In order to remain FCA compliant, you must invest funding into the project that your investor has agreed to fund and to which you are contracted in the legal finance agreement at the time the investor pledges funding.

Question 39

Can I receive investment for one project and allocate it to another?

Accepted Answer

No, this would breach the finance agreement you have agreed with your investor at the time of pledging to a project.

Question 40

Are Funds protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)?

Accepted Answer

No. When funds leave the financial service institution and allocated to an investment project there is no protection. However, while funds remain in your or the investors platform secure accounts, they are protected under safeguarding. Refer to FAQ “How does MANGOPAY protect your money?” and “How does FSCS cover differ from safeguarding?”.

Question 41

Can I receive funding in non-sterling currencies?

Accepted Answer

No, the current version of the platform is designed for the UK market and all transactions must be done in UK Sterling.

Question 42

Can I receive funding in Bitcoin or other Cryptocurrencies?

Accepted Answer

Co-Funding does not support the use of cryptocurrencies at this time.

Question 43

Are there restrictions to the size of investments my investors can make?

Accepted Answer

Co-Funding has no restrictions on the size of investment your investors can make. There is however a platform feature that allows you to define minimum investment values by the project.

Question 44

Who is MANGOPAY?

Accepted Answer

MANGOPAY (Mangopay S.A.) is a regulated payment service provider which processes payments on your behalf for your activities on our platform.

MANGOPAY is an authorised Electronic Money Institution (EMI), licensed in Luxembourg and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK under the Temporary Permissions Regime (TPR). MANGOPAY is authorised to issue electronic money (e-money) and provide payment services.

Frequently Asked Questions

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