On November 9, 2023, Walliance received authorization from CONSOB, after consultation with the Bank of Italy, to operate as a European crowdfunding service provider under Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 and as an Investment Company ("Società di Intermediazione Mobiliare" - SIM) according to Legislative Decree No. 58/1998 (TUF), by resolution No. 22878 of 08/11/2023.
With the obtaining of these authorizations, which require the implementation of new technological and operational structures as well as specific policies to comply with the regulations, we decided to add other new features to improve the user experience and ensure the safest, fastest, easiest investment management procedures possible.
What has changed?
More protections for investors
European Regulation 2020/1503 requires crowdfunding platforms to implement new process controls and greater investor protections, which result in significant changes in the user profile activation process, new policies, and new disclosure documents.
In order to adapt in advance to the guidelines outlined in the new regulations, Walliance has adopted new security safeguards in the past few months, including two new sections in the user profile validation process:
Investor Type
In the "Account" personal area, each user is asked to complete the validation of his profile by selecting the investor type based on his investment knowledge and financial situation. The available options are non-sophisticated, sophisticated, or professional investor.
The simulation of the ability to bear loss
Each user has to simulate his ability to bear loss - in the "Account" personal area - to complete the validation of their profile. This simulation involves information about income, financial activities, and financial commitments, including past and future regular commitments. The purpose of the simulation is solely to allow the investor to simulate his ability to bear any loss. Therefore, when filling in, one may choose not to allow Walliance to save such sensitive data in its system.
The new European Regulation also sets other burdens on crowdfunding platforms that have been authorized under the new regulatory regime and on Project Owners, related to regulatory compliance to protect and in the interest of Investors.
Introduction of the KIIS
For each offer published on the portal, Walliance will share the relevant Key investment information sheet called the "KIIS", which contains information about the Project Owner, the type of offer, and the type of instrument offered (such as equity or lending crowdfunding), investors' rights, the main features of the offer, the conditions for raising capital or borrowing, and the responsibility on the Project Owner for the information provided. The document will replace in all investment offers submitted after November 10, 2023, the so-called Conditions of Offering or DIRS.
New policies
In light of both the European Regulation and its authorization as an Investment Company, Walliance SIM S.p.A. has adopted a number of new internal policies and procedures, such as those on conflicts of interest and on the handling of complaints and out-of-court dispute resolution mechanisms, all of which can are available within on our Help Center.
The Mangopay Wallet has arrived
After a very long time, the Wallet has finally been activated on Walliance!
The Mangopay Wallet is a personal digital wallet that allows investors to manage more easily and at no cost money related to transactions made on Walliance. Once the digital Wallet is opened and reloaded through a simple wire transfer, the deposited amount will be ready to be invested. When you invest in a project, the money goes from your Wallet to the Issuer company's Wallet.
With the Wallet, one can pay the amount of an investment immediately and receive repayments and investment returns without any delay. This digital wallet helps you manage all financial transactions directly through our platform, without any complication and safely.
We have chosen to operate with Mangopay S.A., a company under Luxembourg law, authorized as an electronic money institution by the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (so-called CSSF). It has a "European passport" and is active in Italy, France, and Spain.
New investment products: Lending is here!
By obtaining authorization to operate as a European crowdfunding portal, along with authorization as an Investment Company (Società di Intermediazione Mobiliare - SIM), we are excited to announce that our product range has grown!
The new "Lending" section is now available online, and the first investment offers focused on financing real estate developments in a faster and smarter way will be published in the coming months.
P.s. We'll keep you posted so we can explore these new investment opportunities together!
In September 2023, "Walliance Green" was also unveiled. It's a Lending crowdfunding and investment by-product dedicated to real estate energy upgrades, photovoltaic plant development, agri-voltaic and wind farms, energy communities, biomass plants, and hydroelectric plants.
In addition to the technical forms of Equity, Lending, and Mezzanine provided in the "Walliance Crowd" division, there will also soon be new types of offers within the "Walliance 500" product, which will be released in the coming months:
Equity
This product will only involve professional, institutional, and large asset parties (as defined by MiFID regulations) to develop real estate operations with a funding amount of more than €5 million.
Minibond and Debt
These products will allow investment in companies seeking financial resources to develop multiple real estate operations carried out by the same parent company and/or to finance business development activities through the issuance of bonds and debt financial instruments. Companies that fall under legal provisions will be able to issue and place with Walliance a minibond that can be subscribed by professional and institutional investors, as identified by the relevant regulations.
A success fee for investors
Another significant change concerns the introduction of an investor fee, which is essential to support the growth of an investment portal that can offer high-quality products and services throughout Europe.
We acknowledge that revising the cost model, after six years of free service, represents a significant change for our investor community. That's why we have decided to charge a fee only when the investment is successful, i.e., when the final annualized return equals or exceeds the estimated annual return.
That means that Walliance will not charge any fee if the investments offered on the platform do not at least reach the financial forecasts initially stated in the Investment Offer.
In the case of a successful investment, the success fee is applied at the exit stage: the amounts related to the repayment of the capital invested and the generated return are paid to the investor's Mangopay Wallet, and a fee of 1% for users with Standard and Gold Première accounts, and 0.75% for users holding a Black Première account, is charged on the invested amount.
ℹ️ The introduction of the success fee is not retroactive. Fees will be applied only on investment offers presented on the portal starting November 17, 2023.
News for Première
Two years after the launch of Première, our dedicated service for private investors and High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs), we are pleased to announce three significant changes:
Requirements for Première Gold
You can now also access the services offered by a Première Gold account by selecting the "non-sophisticated investor" category as your investor type. As a result, it will no longer be mandatory to submit any type of certification of possession of Sophisticated or Professional investor status.
In addition, the minimum investment ticket per project has been decreased from €10,000 to €5,000.
Increased yield for Première Black
Among the benefits now included for Première Black account holders, there is now also the "Increased Yield". This implies an increased yield (or interest rate), which will be determined for each project in favor of Black Accounts, taking into account the specifics of the Offer.
New fees for investments in "Walliance 500"
Exclusively for investments made by Première Black investors on the products offered by "Walliance 500," i.e., products that will exclusively involve professional, institutional, and high net-worth individuals (in accordance with MiFID regulations), an investment fee of 0.75% and an annual management fee on the active portfolio (exclusively for Walliance 500) of 0.20% will be charged.
We kindly ask you to log in to the portal and review the new General Conditions of Use.
The updates to the General Conditions of Use are effective November 17, 2023, and acceptance is required to continue using Walliance services.
Once accepted, we invite you to finalize your profile validation by updating the new sections of your "Account" area marked with the icon ⚠️:
Any question? 💬
Please write to us by opening a ticket through the chatbot – we’ll get back to you ASAP!