Blend Network - Risk and return review
Blend Network - Returns and loss rates
Blend Network – Platform statistics 2026
Blend Network – Pros & Cons
About Blend Network
What it is
Blend Network is a London peer-to-peer platform that lends to UK property developers. It has run since 2017, is authorised by the UK Financial Conduct Authority and is open to UK residents with a UK bank account. Its statistics page shows 261 loans and £230.0 million funded since 2017 (read October 2026, undated). The page labels that column "GDV funded", so it is not fully clear whether it is the amount lent or the value of the projects.
How it works
You lend from £1,000 per loan, alongside other investors, to developers buying, converting, building or refinancing homes across the UK. Each loan is placed in a risk category from A (low) to E (very high), based mainly on the borrower's experience and the loan size against the property's value. Interest is fixed per year and usually paid when the loan is repaid, when the property is sold or refinanced. The average loan term was 16.4 months for 2025 loans and 18.6 months for 2026 loans. An automatic lending tool fills loans first come, first served; you must keep at least your chosen amount as cash in your account, and that cash earns no interest.
Returns
Blend's outcomes statement for 2025 (published 30 April 2026) shows an actual return of 10.00% a year on fully repaid category B loans, against 8.50% expected. In 2024 the actual returns were 10.00% (category A) and 9.73% (category B). These are simple averages of loans that have been fully repaid; loans that are late or not yet repaid are left out. The platform advertises returns of 8% to 12% a year, not guaranteed. For 2026 it expects 8.50% to 9.25% a year after expected losses, depending on the category. Interest is paid without tax taken off.
Losses and defaults
No investor has lost capital so far: capital losses are 0% for every year from 2017 to 2026 (October 2026). Blend counts a loan as defaulted only once an insolvency professional has been appointed; on that measure 1 of 261 loans has defaulted (0.38%, calculated from the platform's own figures), and it was repaid in full with interest. On the regulator's wider definition (more than 180 days overdue or unlikely to pay without enforcement), the 2025 outcomes statement shows 6 projects (22 loans) in technical default and 5 projects (20 loans) 90 to 180 days late at the end of 2025. That is about 9.7% of loans by count, calculated from the platform's own figures. The statistics page now shows 2 projects in technical default and none in arrears, without explaining how the others were resolved. A loss is recorded only after the security has been sold, so late loans carry no loss figure yet.
What secures your money
Every loan is secured by a first charge on UK property, usually with personal guarantees from the borrower's directors. The security is held for investors by a separate company, Blend (Security Trustee) Limited, so it does not depend on the platform company. Each loan's risk category reflects its loan-to-value; independent valuations are provided. There is no buyback, reserve fund or insurance. If a borrower cannot pay, Blend says it would repossess and sell the property for investors, which can take several months and may not return the full amount; late borrowers pay investors an extra 0.25% a month. So far the only formal default was recovered in full. In plain terms: your loan is backed by property, and that backing has been tested once.
Who runs it and its licence
Blend Loan Network Limited (company 10025252, London, incorporated 2016) is authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (firm reference 913456) to run a peer-to-peer lending platform, with full direct authorisation since April 2021. It publishes yearly outcomes statements with expected and actual defaults and returns, as UK rules require. Lending through it is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Public review score 4.2 out of 5 (151 reviews, August 2026); complaints focus on the automatic lending queue, idle cash and delays on building projects.
Fees
There are no set-up, membership or lending fees. Selling a loan part to another investor costs the seller 0.60% (£6 per £1,000 sold); buyers pay nothing. Blend is paid by borrowers, and those fees are not published. Cash waiting in your account earns no interest.
Getting your money out
Loans are repaid when the property is sold or refinanced, usually after 16 to 19 months, sometimes later. You can try to sell loan parts early on the platform's resale market, in £1,000 steps and only at face value, once the money has reached the borrower. A buyer is not promised, and Blend can stop a loan from trading, for example when it is in default.
Our view
Return: High — fully repaid loans returned 10.00% a year in 2025 (category B), above what was expected. Risk: Very Low (higher means more risk) — no capital has been lost since 2017 and the one formal default was recovered in full, though several loans have run well past their due date. Risk-return: Very High — a high, measured return with no losses so far on property-secured loans.
Regulation
License / Regulation: Blend Loan Network Limited (company 10025252) is authorised by the UK Financial Conduct Authority, firm reference number 913456, to operate an electronic system in relation to lending (peer-to-peer), with full direct authorisation since April 2021. Lending through the platform is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Functionality
For Investors
Useful Information
Yes. Blend Loan Network Limited is authorised by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (firm reference 913456) to run a peer-to-peer lending platform. Your loans are not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
Cash you have not lent is kept in a segregated client money account at Barclays Bank plc, administered by Mangopay U.K. Ltd, separate from Blend's own money. It earns no interest. Once lent, your money is with the developer, secured on the property.
£1,000 per loan. Resale is also in £1,000 steps.
Fully repaid category B loans returned 10.00% a year in 2025 (8.50% expected). No capital has been lost since 2017; 1 of 261 loans has formally defaulted and it was recovered in full. At the end of 2025, 22 loans were more than 180 days overdue and 20 more were 90 to 180 days late.
Each loan is secured by a first charge on UK property, usually with personal guarantees from the borrower's directors. The security is held by a separate company, Blend (Security Trustee) Limited. If a borrower fails, Blend would sell the property for investors, which takes months and may not return everything. There is no buyback or reserve fund.
You can list loan parts on the resale market in £1,000 steps at face value, after the money has reached the borrower. Sellers pay 0.60%. A buyer is not promised, and Blend can stop a loan from trading.
No set-up, membership or lending fees. Selling on the resale market costs 0.60% (£6 per £1,000). Blend is paid by borrowers.
Your cash is held separately at Barclays and the loan security is held by a separate trustee company, so both are meant to stay with investors. Collecting the loans would still depend on someone running them down, and Blend has not published how much it keeps aside for that.
Building projects often take longer than planned. Blend counts a loan as late only after 90 days and in technical default after 180 days, and as defaulted only once an insolvency professional is appointed, so a loan can be well overdue without counting as a default. Late borrowers pay investors an extra 0.25% a month.
