Peer-to-peer lender Zopa.com has been handing out cash-topped ‘money trees’ to London commuters this week.

Passengers at Victoria train station were offered the mini potted trees, which were decorated with a £10 note and £10 Zopa voucher, redeemable when a lender first uses the platform.

The stunt was designed to encourage people to think about using peer-to-peer lending as an investment tool, as Zopa claimed that lending to borrowers through its site offered a greater rate of return than savings accounts.

Zopa currently has over 57,000 lenders earning 5.2 per cent interest on their investment. Last month, the company announced that it had loaned more than $1 billion since its launch in 2005.

The average lent is around £5,500, and there are 63,000 borrowers in the UK, with the lowest default rate of any P2P lender or bank, according to Zopa.

Commenting on the money tree giveaway, Zopa’s CEO and co-founder Giles Andrews, said: “With the money trees we wanted to put a smile on the faces of busy commuters. It is not every day you encounter someone wanting to give you money on your way to work. The money tree campaign is all about encouraging Brits to plant a seed with Zopa and watch their money grow.

“With Zopa, you can lend as little as £10 to get started, so it really is open to everyone. You will get a much higher rate of interest than you would with a bank so it really is a no-brainer.”

Share Story: