A new report by online savings and investment platform BondMason, which sources investments across the p2p market for its clients, has revealed that peer-to-peer lending in the UK doubled in 2015 to £2.3 billion.

The report claims that peer-to-peer lender platforms are rapidly becoming the go-to alternatives to traditional savings accounts, stocks and shares and ISAs. With rock-bottom interest rates still characterising the offerings of high street banks, more and more investors are turning to p2p lending to secure better returns.

Although the p2p market space is dominated by a small number of big players, there has been a steady growth in what BondMason describes as “bulge bracket” platforms (defined as platforms currently arranging total loans of £10million and above). These players have been progressively carving out certain niches and are experiencing impressive growth.

Intriguingly, the report contains three key predictions for 2016:

There will be a growth in p2p consolidations

The Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) will begin slowly but will definitely bring new investors into the space

The peer-to-peer lender industry will expand by a further £1bn - 1.5bn

The company notes that the larger operators have not yet achieved entrenched positions, with the result that one-off shocks and natural churn will probably change the line-up of leading operators over time. Some of the most impressive bulge bracket growth has come from property-oriented p2p platforms, and p2p lenders catering to different borrowing markets are performing well, with strong growth during 2015.

The company adds “Similar to the investment banking industry we believe that the bulge bracket platforms will continue to thrive, taking clients from the larger operators; and will be the most active in platform mergers and acquisitions.”

“Due to the relatively low operational cost bases in the industry (as compared to operating a high street bank), we consider that all p2p platforms which are efficiently structured can sustain themselves .Therefore, we do not believe that only the very largest platforms will survive.”

An example of an up-and-coming peer-to-peer lender is secured asset loan platform Unbolted, which has grown substantially in 2015 and is poised for an excellent year in 2016. If meaningful niches are a key to future success, Unbolted has certainly been building one, offering fast and transparent loans to individuals, SMEs and art dealers/collectors who are experiencing temporary liquidity problems but are also in possession of valuable assets.

By partnering with experts in various secondary markets (chiefly auctioneers), Unbolted’s team can rapidly asses the resale value of a personal possession, whether it’s a luxury watch, an item of jewellery, a high-end luxury handbag, a classic car, a piece of fine art or a musical instrument. It also accepts gold and silver, rare books and manuscripts, high-value wine collections and even top-end furniture. The asset is then placed with Unbolted in secure storage for the duration of the loan (typically six months), where it acts as collateral – borrowers never need worry about leaving a digital credit search footprint behind. Once the loan matures, borrowers either settle or agree to allow the asset to be sold at auction.