A new joint report from the University of Cambridge and the innovation charity Nesta has found that the alternative finance industry last year grew at half the rate achieved in 2014, as peer-to-peer (P2P) lenders struggled to find enough creditworthy individuals.

The study reveals that the overall value of the market, which encompasses crowdfunding investments, P2P loans and donations, reached £3.2 billion in 2015, an expansion of 84% on the previous year’s growth. However, growth in 2014 was 161%.

Nesta Principal Researcher Peter Baeck explained that P2P lending remains the major driver of the alternative finance industry. The study simply highlights that, as with any industry that has started to mature, the growth is slowing, he added.

Peer-to-Peer Finance Association (P2PFA) Independent Chair Christine Farnish said: “Today’s report shows not only how the market is evolving, but it demonstrates how significant the alternative finance industry has become to consumers and small to medium-sized enterprises. In only a matter of years, peer-to-peer business lending and invoice trading is playing an important funding role for thousands of creditworthy SMEs, while the growth in peer-to-peer consumer lending is challenging the traditional banks and building societies.”

P2P platform Unbolted has long argued that the emphasis on impeccable creditworthiness amongst its competitors unfairly excludes people who may not yet have managed to achieve such credentials. It provides finance for a segment of the borrowing market who may be temporarily cash poor but simultaneously asset rich. Its unique secured asset loan enables it to collateralise high-value personal possessions owned by individual or SME borrowers without the need for intrusive credit assessments.