The following is a list of frequently asked questions and corresponding answers. If you have a specific question that is not answered below, please contact us and we will be happy to help.
Investabill® can be used for any type of savings.
Savings for a ‘rainy ‘day’, for the future, for a holiday or even for your pension if you have a Small Self-Administered Pension scheme
It’s probably not worth saving less than EUR 50 or 100 per month and Investabill® is also good for lump sum investments, e.g. current savings in a bank or an inheritance
Absolutely. Use the Withdraw button in the Investabill® app. Just remember, if you plan to deposit and withdraw on a regular basis, ensure you use Investabill® Demand. Otherwise we’d suggest Fixed or Term might be a better option
Certainly. Open your first account and then contact the Trade Desk and they’ll create a second account for you. For example, the first account can be for regular long-term savings and the second one is for emergencies
Yes and we’ll create two or more accounts to make that possible
Yes. One person opens the account and they contact the Trade Desk who will add the second person’s name to the account. Once this is done, either person can save to the account and both people are required to approve any withdrawal
Absolutely. Use the Withdraw button in the Investabill® app. Just remember, if you plan to deposit and withdraw on a regular basis, ensure you use Investabill® Demand. Otherwise we’d suggest Fixed or Term might be a better option
Yes. When you open the account if you selected Regular Savings, this will happen automatically on a date that you select
Yes of course. It’s your money, you decide what best suits you
Yes. Just contact the Trade Desk and they’ll create a set up the direct debits for you. This can be from one, two or multiple accounts
Barclay’s Bank in Dublin Ireland
Very secure. All Investabill® are protected by the Credebt® Guarantee
For more than 10 years, Credebt® has being protecting Investors’ funds. At its discretion, Credebt® may use its own funds and assets to protect Investors’ funds. Whatever amount Investors deposit, they can withdraw on demand and get ‘bank busting’ yield.
Investors’ funds are used to purchase Traded ETR. These are commercial transactions between companies that Credebt® carefully vets using extensive market knowledge, experience and the latest in corporate ‘big data’.
If for any reason the Traded ETR fails to be repaid and settled in full, Credebt® may (at its discretion) simply replace the distressed ETR with another Traded ETR.
Alternatively, Credebt® may (at its discretion) repurchase the distressed ETR from the Investor and return their funds with interest and without charge.
The Credebt® Guarantee has been silently in operation for many years. Investors take comfort in the knowledge that for over 10 years and more than EUR 1 billion of trade, Credebt® have returned Investors’ funds when requested and Investors have received the yield agreed on the day they deposited their funds. The Credebt® Guarantee is the ’peace of mind’ that underpins all Investors funds deposited in Investabill®.
More than 10 years
Because until now, Investabill® was only accessible through specialist investment advisers. We decided it’s time to make it available to regular savers and anyone with a lump sum that wants a better return than they get in the bank
15A Baggotrath Place, 15-16 Lower Baggot Street, Dublin D02 NX49, Ireland.
The Investabill® hotline is: +353 1 685-3665
Patrick Reynolds is our Chief Executive
Because the funds are used to buy ETR and these Exchange Traded Receivables create the investor return that is taxed as capital gains
Yes. Each year if the return you get from ETR is less than EUR 1,270 all your savings are tax free. As we are not tax advisers, everyone’s personal circumstances are different. It is important you do not assume we know yours, so get proper tax advice to be safe
Because companies pay tax on profits they earn and any return they get from ETR is considered profit. As we are not tax advisers, everyone’s personal circumstances are different. It is important you do not assume we know yours, so get proper tax advice to be safe
Investment Grade [IG] refers to the quality of an organisation’s credit. In order to be considered Investment Grade [IG], the company must be rated at ‘BBB’ or higher by Standard & Poor’s, Fitch or Moody’s. Anything below this ‘BBB’ rating is considered non-investment grade.
Investment quality is a combination of Investment Grade [IG] organisations and other credit worthy organisations, as determined by AIG from time to time. Insurance depends on the type of trade or asset and may use alternative ETR Off-Set or Price-to-Value [PTV] for improved protection.
A ‘Traded ETR’ is any ETR that has been sold on Credebt Exchange® .
Once an ETR is sold and becomes a Traded ETR, the Investor that paid for the ETR is the legal owner and as the legal owner, has vested the ownership and care of that ETR in Credebt Exchange® as Document Agent and Servicer.
Any organisation that is the payor, or obligor, of an ETR is a Debtor.
The Notice of Assignment [NoA] is a document that is sent to the Debtor, prior to Trading the ETR, to advise them that the invoice has been sold and is owned by Credebt Exchange® (in trust for the Investor) and that payment must be made to the specified Credebt Exchange® Bank account.
A Notice of Assignment [NoA] is necessary to ensure absolute security in the ETR Investor’s purchase. The NoA provides for True Sale and Legal Assignment. By law, to achieve legal assignment, the Debtor must be notified that the ETR has been sold and that the Investor is the new owner.
Investors that agree a specific Buy rate are agreeing to buy a specific ‘block’ of ETR over a certain period of time on a recurring or revolving basis. It is this Revolving ETR that provides the Investor with a constant supply of ETR until the term of their investment period is reached.
A Revolving Purchase Agreement [RPA] is the agreement that stipulates the time duration and the amount that an Investor will commit to the Exchange to purchase ETR. The RPA specifically documents the discount that the Investor expects and this discount is annualised to show the Investor’s yield for the duration/period of the RPA.
The ‘Face Value’ of an ETR is the total value of the ETR including all taxes, VAT, delivery charges, etc.; It is the total amount that the Debtor must pay for the ETR to be regarded as Settled (i.e. paid in full).
At its sole discretion, Credebt Exchange® repurchases, or buys back, any Traded ETR that is not Settled within ninety (90) days of the Expected Date due to non-payment or insolvency of the Debtor or which has been written-off as uncollectible. Credebt Exchange® shall repurchase such Traded ETR by paying to the Servicer an amount equal to the Repurchase Price of such Traded ETR.
Credebt Exchange® enables invoices from service/goods providers to be offered as Exchange Traded Receivables [ETR] for sale on the Exchange.
Any organisation seeking to sell its ETR on the Exchange will register as an Originator.
The Buy rate is the agreed yield/return that the Intermediary, or the Investor, negotiates with the Exchange. An investment of EUR 100,000 for a term of 12 months with a Buy rate of 3.000% will return EUR 103,000 to the Investor at the end of the 12 month term.
The ‘cooling off’ period for investing in ETR is 21 days. This means that within 21 days of the date of receipt of an Investor’s funds, the Investor can cancel their order without reason and have their funds returned to them. Although Credebt Exchange® is not regulated by the Central Bank, it still adheres to ‘best practice’ and the cooling off period is in accordance with the European Communities (Distance Marketing of Consumer Financial Services) Regulations 2004, SI No 853 of 2004. The cancellation period for the Investor ends 21 days after the signing of the Revolving ETR Purchase Agreement contract.
The Credebt Exchange® Master Agreement is the central, legal instrument that makes exchange trading possible.
No. The use of the Credebt Exchange® Master Agreement that enables ETR is substantially different to Invoice Discounting/Factoring [IDF]. With IDF the risk is to the Originator. With ETR the risk is to the investment quality Debtor (i.e. not the Originator) where risk of default is unlikely.
The yield is calculated on a daily basis using the Investment Date and 1/365 to define 1 day, or part thereof. See 3.02 – 3.05 below for more details.
An Investor opens an account, deposits funds and this creates the Investment Date.
Any deposit or withdrawal or change in the Investment Yield changes the Investment Date.
Credebt Exchange® reserves the right to change the Investment Yield at any time giving 30-Days’ Notice.
Investment Yield is calculated on every Investment Date and is added to the Investor Balance. Note:- Any withdrawal from Fixed or Term investments prior to the maturity date cancels all Investment Yield.
All receipts are subject to a ‘cooling off’ period (see 2.15 above) of 21 days, during which time no yield is calculated. For 21 days the Investment Yield is zero.
Currently, Investors do not pay to become Members of the Exchange. This may be subject to change.
There is a EUR 15.00 bank charge on redemptions and no other charges are applied to Investor accounts.
Every Investor transaction occurs on a rolling settlement basis. This means the receipt or redemption occurs on the next settlement time and date. For example a receipt or redemption that is initiated on a Monday, may not appear on the Investor statement until Tuesday.
The Investor purchases ETR at a nominal discount to Face Value. The Discount Percentage is the monthly charge that is applied to the Face Value of the ETR for each month that it is outstanding.
No. Credebt Exchange® receives and securely stores the invoice and this is only given to any Institutional Investor that has not elected to have Credebt Exchange® repurchase ETR that are in default. In this (rare) instance, the Institutional Investor receives a copy of the invoice so that they can pursue the distressed debt. No Retail Investor is permitted to trade unless the ETR Default Repurchase percentage is 100% (i.e. so that Credebt Exchange® must repurchase any defaulted ETR).
When the investor confirms their order using the Revolving ETR Purchase Agreement [RPA] by either signing this on paper, or online, it states what the ETR Default Repurchase percentage is. For Retail Investors, this is always set to 100%. This means Credebt Exchange is contractually committed to repurchase any ETR that default (i.e. are not Settled, in full, within 90 days of the Expected Date). To protect the Investor credit insurance is provided by AIG.
Any financial institution, investment intermediary, or natural person seeking to buy ETR on the Exchange, will register as an Investor. If a natural person wishes to be an Investor, they must be over 18 years and have the capacity to enter into the Master Agreement and is not acting as a “consumer” within the meaning of the CCA, the Unfair Terms Regulations, the Distance Marketing Regulations, the CPA or the CCA Regulations or a “personal consumer” within the meaning of Consumer Protection Code.
For Retail Investors, the ETR Default Repurchase percentage is always set to 100%. This means Credebt Exchange® is contractually committed to repurchase any ETR that default.
According to the latest Standards & Poor’s Annual Global Corporate Default Study, the global structured finance annual default rate dropped to a 14-year low of 0.600% in 2021 from 1.400% in 2020.
Credebt Exchange® purchases credit insurance for its own benefit from AIG to ensure it has adequate capital to repurchase any ETR that default. Insurance depends on the type of trade or asset and may use alternative ETR Off-Set or Price-to-Value [PTV] for improved protection.
The Master Agreement enables invoices to be offered for sale as ETR via the true sale method that features full legal assignment from the Originator to the Investor (i.e. the Investor’s risk is absolutely to the Debtor). Every Member of the Exchange is bound by the Master Agreement.
The European Securities and Markets Authority [ESMA] uses the Synthetic Risk & Reward Indicator [SRRI] value that is designed to provide Investors with a meaningful indication of the overall risk and reward profile of Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities [UCITS]. These open-ended funds trade in many asset classes, such as Asset Backed Commercial Paper [ABCP] and have no restrictions on the amount of securities they issue. Although Investabill® are neither a financial instrument nor an investment instrument they can be compared to ABCP. The Synthetic Risk & Reward Indicator is generated using a specific set of guidelines issued by the Committee of European Securities Regulators [CESR] and the SRRI value for Investabill® is calculated in accordance with the CESR/10-673 guidelines.
Any financial institution, investment intermediary, or natural person seeking to buy ETR on the Exchange, will register as an Investor. If a natural person wishes to be an Investor, they must be over 18 years and have the capacity to enter into the Master Agreement within the meaning of the CCA, the Unfair Terms Regulations, the Distance Marketing Regulations, the CPA or the CCA Regulations or a “personal consumer” within the meaning of Consumer Protection Code.
No. Credebt Exchange® receives and securely stores the invoice and this is only given to the Investor if the ETR is not Settled (i.e. paid in full by the Debtor) within 180 days so that they can appoint a debt collection agent to pursue the distressed debt.
Institutional Investors trade directly on the Exchange. Retail Investors are invited by an Intermediary to become Members of the Exchange. For more information read the Quick Start Guide.
Investors seeking a return on their capital that is:
Also, organisations of any size are Originators on the Exchange and sell their ETR to Investors.
ETR are not financial instruments and as such, both IIA firms and MiFID firms can trade in ETR, regardless of what their Central Bank licences permit them to do. ETR could just as well be apples or oranges from a licensing perspective.
Credebt Exchange® is not regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland as a result of operating the Exchange and providing the Exchange Services. Its role is limited to that of Negotiation Agent, Document Agent & Servicer in respect of the Exchange and the Exchange Services and that of introducer, negotiator and facilitator in respect of the sale and purchase of ETR by Members over the Exchange.
Albeit that ETR differ significantly from Invoice Discounting/Factoring [IDF], ETR ‘fall under’ the IDF exception. For example, although a Bank is regulated, the Bank’s IDF business is not regulated. This is because IDF uses neither financial instruments nor investment instruments in operating its business.
Credebt Exchange uses the Exchange to introduce ETR Originators (i.e. sellers) to ETR Investors (i.e. buyers) and documents the buying and selling of ETR. From meeting with the Central Bank of Ireland, the buying and selling of ETR is IDF exempt and is therefore not a regulated activity.
Equivalent Ratings are simple and are not derived, or influenced in any way, by Credebt Exchange® . In the case of any organisation with ratings from Moody’s, Fitch or Standard & Poor’s, Credebt Exchange® selects the highest Equivalent Rating and presents it using the Credebt Exchange® Equivalent Ratings table.
From a deposit perspective, where capital and yield is guaranteed, only banks compete with the Credebt Exchange® ETR proposition.
In a pension or other investment context, pension funds, structured product producers and a broad range of other investment opportunities can compete with ETR. However, few if any, offer the same capital, yield and allocation (see above).
The following information has been provided by Deloitte. The information is intended as a guideline only and Investors should seek independent tax advice, subject to status.
Individuals & Partnerships
If the transaction is an investment transaction, then the individual investor will be subject to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) of 33% on any gains. However, the first EUR 1,270 of any gain will be exempt from CGT. This means it can be off-set against other capital losses in prior, or even current years. Any gain would need to be included in Section M of the Form 11
Company
In general, companies which hold assets (such as the debts) such as “general insurance” companies and banks are taxable on profits at the 12.5% rate. The profit made by the investor should be subject to the 12.5% rate, provided the assets are held as part of the trade and income is earned in the course of a “trade”
Pension Funds
Income and gains arising to a pension fund are rolled up tax free
Hedge Fund
While hedge funds can encompass a wide range of investment vehicles, in Ireland typically hedge funds use Qualifying Investment Funds [QIFs]. QIFs are not subject to direct tax on their income and gains. Income and gains are rolled up tax free with a tax charge only arising on certain chargeable events such as distribution of profits
Life Companies
Recently incorporated Irish tax resident life assurance companies, together with their overseas branch(s) are generally taxed in accordance with the trading profits as shown in their GAAP/IFRS accounts. Certain of these companies will be subject to Irish corporate tax using a more complex computation; such special computational rules apply where Life Assurance Companies carried on business of writing policies pre 2001. The rate of corporate tax on the profits is 12.5% provided the life companies are holding the assets on trading account.
When the Investor commits to purchasing ETR on the Exchange, they must confirm their order (in most cases, this is an online confirmation, directly on the Exchange) prior to trading commencing. The Master Agreement is visible to the Investor at the point of confirming their order. For more information read the Quick Start Guide.