Investown Review

What it is

Investown is a Czech platform where private investors lend to property developers and other Czech companies, with each loan secured on real estate. It is one of the largest Czech platforms of its kind: 140,000 users, 512 projects funded and CZK 11.2 billion invested, with CZK 1.37 billion paid out in returns (1 November 2026).

How it works

You register online, verify your identity and invest from CZK 500 per project, on the website or in the mobile app. Each project has a rating from A to C and a fixed interest rate; offers open on 1 November 2026 paid 7.6% to 10% a year. Loans run 34 months on average. An Autoinvest tool can spread your money across new projects automatically, and you can sell investments to other investors on the Marketplace.

Returns

Investown reports an average return of 8.7% a year (results page updated 1 November 2026; the home page calls it the average for the previous quarter). It does not say how the figure is weighted, and it is most likely the average contract interest rate before any losses. Because nothing has been written off yet, no separate return after losses is published.

Losses and defaults

Nothing has been written off: losses stand at 0.00% of the CZK 11.2 billion invested, but 56.51% of that money is still in active loans (1 November 2026). Defaults are rising. Under the EU crowdfunding rules the platform reports that 10 of 148 loans defaulted in 2025 (6.76%), after 3 of 93 in 2024 (3.23%) and 1 of 18 in 2023 (5.56%). In 2025 no A-rated loan defaulted, while 9.09% of B- and C-rated loans did. The platform expects a 5.05% default rate for 2026. A loan counts as defaulted when it is more than 90 days late or unlikely to be paid. Losses could therefore still appear.

What secures your money

Each loan is secured by a mortgage on a specific property, which the platform describes as first-ranking, plus further security that differs by project. The average loan-to-value is 68.7% (69% on the home page, November 2026), so property prices would have to fall by about a third before the security no longer covers the loan on average. The platform checks borrowers in credit and insolvency registers and works with listed valuers. There is no buyback and no reserve fund. If a borrower stops paying, the partner gets at most 90 days, then a credit committee decides on an extension or recovery, with sale of the mortgaged property as the last step. Nothing has been written off so far, but 10 of 148 loans defaulted in 2025 and no recovery figures are published yet, so how well the mortgages work in practice is still untested.

Who runs it and its licence

The platform is run by Investown Technologies s.r.o. (company number 086 67 144). The Czech National Bank authorised it as a European crowdfunding service provider by decision 2023/135914/CNB/650 of 20 October 2023. The platform says it earns mainly from fees paid by borrowers. No compensation scheme covers the loans.

Fees

Opening an account, investing, depositing and the first withdrawal in any 24 hours are free. Selling an investment early on the Marketplace costs 0.9% of the amount sold, or nothing if you sell because a loan's term was extended. A second or later withdrawal within 24 hours costs CZK 9. When Investown recovers statutory late interest from a borrower, it keeps 30% of that interest (fee list valid from 19 December 2025).

Getting your money out

You can sell investments to other investors on the Marketplace before the loan ends, for a 0.9% fee, if a buyer is found. Otherwise money comes back when the loan is repaid, 34 months on average. Money paid back goes to your Investown wallet, from which you can withdraw to your bank account.

Our view

Return: Medium. The average return is 8.7% a year. Risk: Low (higher means more risk). Nothing has been written off and the loans carry property mortgages at an average loan-to-value of 68.7%, but 6.76% of loans (10 of 148) defaulted in 2025, so losses could still appear. Risk-return: High.