Investors unsure how best to save since the EU referendum

Three months after the EU referendum, one in three UK investors claims the outcome of the vote has put them off investing - according to research commissioned by peer-to-peer lender ThinCats.

The survey also revealed one in five, or around 9.5 million people, say low-interest rates have stopped them saving money and one in six young investors say peer-to-peer lending has become more attractive in wake of Brexit and the resulting market volatility.

Earlier this month, the Bank of England lowered interest rates to 0.25 per cent in a bid to stimulate the economy following forecasts of a weaker outlook post-Brexit. This is also having a hugely significant effect on people’s money habits, according to the ThinCats study.

While many investment options are being avoided in the wake of Brexit, some assets have become more attractive, such as gold, with 14 per cent of investors claiming to have turned to the commodity to shore up security.

Meanwhile, nine per cent of all investors say they are now more drawn to cash options while seven per cent see peer-to-peer lending as more attractive since the EU result. This trend was amplified among 18-34-year-olds, with 16 per cent claiming they are now more attracted to investing in peer-to-peer.

Kevin Caley, founder and chairman of ThinCats, said: “An unprecedented period of low-interest rates combined with recent market volatility, heightened by the decision to leave the EU, has left many savers and investors scratching their heads about how best to use their cash.”

“Alternative finance has come a long way in helping to plug this gap, offering some reprieve for investors, many of whom believed they’d be seeing a rate rise by 2017. In the last two months alone, our research tells us that many thousands of investors have started looking at peer-to-peer lending as a way of earning meaningful returns while avoiding the rollercoaster ride of volatile markets.”