Last Update: 14 August 2026
New investors receive 0.5% cashback on all investments made within the first 90 days after registration. In addition, all investors will receive 1% cashback on all investments in Stikcredit loans until 31 August 2026. I am invested with my own funds at Afranga since August 2025. Since then, I achieved a total return (XIRR) of 12,89%. My outstanding portfolio on the platform stands at 12.801 €. Afranga is a Bulgaria-based P2P lending platform where investors primarily invest in business loans from a range of international loan originators, while earning above-average returns of up to 16%. The P2P platform was originally launched in 2021 by the Bulgarian company Stik-Credit JSC as a funding tool for its own lending operations. Its origin story is therefore comparable to other P2P platforms such as Esketit (AvaFin Holding) or Lendermarket (Creditstar). Since receiving its license under the European Crowdfunding Regulation (ECSP) in 2023, Afranga has been operating as an independent P2P platform. Nevertheless, its structure remains closely tied to Stik Credit. With the addition of external lenders, Afranga evolved into a P2P lending marketplace in 2025. At its core, Afranga is characterized by competitive interest rates of up to 16%, regulatory compliance, and segregated investor accounts via Lemonway. All key facts and figures about Afranga at a glance. For those who prefer watching over reading, take a look at my Afranga video review (August 2025): How does Afranga make money? Similar to other P2P lending marketplaces, Afranga primarily monetizes through brokerage fees charged to the loan originators. According to the Afranga price list, this fee can be as high as 10% per annum. The market average usually ranges between 2% and 3%. Additionally, loan originators are charged a one-time fee of EUR 3,000 for the evaluation of a potential collaboration. Investors, on the other hand, do not incur any costs or fees. Neither for account maintenance, deposits, withdrawals, nor any other services. In February 2026, I visited Afranga in person for the first time in Sofia. During my visit, I had the opportunity to speak with Ivaylo Ivanov (Strategic Advisor and former CEO of the iuvo Group), Yonko Chuklev (Chief Compliance Officer) and Afranga founder and CEO Svetlin Sabev. Our conversations covered a range of topics, including the loan originator due diligence process and potential conflicts of interest (most notably regarding Stik-Credit) as well as the regulatory collaboration with the Bulgarian financial supervisory authority and the planned product roadmap. The latter included the introduction of an Auto Invest function, a secondary market and a fixed-return investment product modelled after Bondora Go & Grow, which launched just a few weeks later under the name SaveSmart. Further insights into my impressions and conversations on-site can be found in this article. P2P lending is a dynamic asset class where investors should stay continuously informed. You will find the latest news on Afranga on my P2P lending news page, where I cover other P2P platforms as well. Afranga has introduced a new early withdrawal feature for SaveSmart. Investors can now withdraw up to 30% of their investment before maturity, subject to a maximum of €5,000. In addition, withdrawals of up to €100 can be made without any deduction. To compensate for the increased liquidity, Afranga charges a 1% fee on the amount withdrawn. Afranga has expanded its product offering and now also features real estate loans on the platform. The first project (Modern Housing; Ovcha Kupel) targets a return of 9% p.a. with a term of 12 months. Monthly payouts are to be processed via SaveSmart. Additionally, an early exit option (Quick Liquidity) has been announced for real estate investments, though it is not yet available. Alternatively, you can subscribe to my Telegram channel or WhatsApp group (both free of charge) to receive real-time updates as soon as new developments emerge. Who are the key shareholders behind the scenes? And which individuals are responsible for the operational management of the P2P platform? Let’s take a closer look in the following sections of my Afranga review. Who owns Afranga? The P2P platform is officially operated by the Bulgarian company “Afranga EOOD.” A look into the Bulgarian company register reveals that Svetlin Nikolov Sabev, CEO and founder of Afranga, is also the sole shareholder of the platform. He is an experienced entrepreneur in the fintech sector who, among other things, has been working for Stik-Credit since 2018 and also co-founded Lendivo, the first new loan originator on Afranga. Here is a list of the key individuals leading Afranga’s operational management: To register on Afranga, the following requirements must be met: The registration process is simple and intuitive. After opening an account using an email address, users must complete questionnaires for KYC (Know Your Customer) and AML (Anti-Money Laundering). This is followed by identity verification and providing the tax residency information. Legal entities also have the option to register with Afranga. In this case, the company must be based in the EEA or Switzerland.
New investors receive 0.5% cashback on all investments made within the first 90 days after registration. In addition, all investors will receive 1% cashback on all investments in Stikcredit loans until 31 August 2026. A platform overview with all bonus offers and cashback promotions can be found on the bonus page. How does investing on Afranga work? What should you know, and what should you potentially watch out for? In the following sections, you’ll find a concise overview with all the essential information. In 2025, Afranga completed its transformation into a P2P marketplace. This means that loans are no longer funded solely by Stik Credit but also by external lenders. Below is a brief overview of the current loan originators on Afranga: Investors can choose fixed terms of 3, 6, or 12 months, each with its own interest rate. SaveSmart invests in business loans issued by the loan originator Stikcredit. At the end of the selected term, investors receive their principal together with the accrued interest. Since August 2026, investors have been able to withdraw their funds from SaveSmart before maturity. Early withdrawals are limited to 30% of the investment, up to a maximum of €5,000. In addition, withdrawals of up to €100 can be made without any deduction. To provide this additional liquidity, Afranga charges a 1% fee on the amount withdrawn early. Afranga charges a 1% fee for early withdrawals from SaveSmart. Apart from that, the platform does not charge any additional fees to investors. There are no account maintenance fees, deposit or withdrawal fees, or fees for investing on the Primary Market. What returns can investors realistically expect on Afranga? Stik Credit typically offers interest rates between 14% and 16%, which is a few percentage points above the market average. The platform itself quotes an average return of 15.6%. For the newer, externally added lenders, interest rates are somewhat lower, ranging from 10% to 12%. Besides the interest rate, the key factors affecting the achievable return are the portfolio quality and the regularity of repayments from the loan originators. So far, no defaults have been reported, which means Afranga offers a very attractive return profile relative to the underlying risk. Buyback Guarantee Under the ESCP regulation, Afranga has shifted from consumer loan claims to corporate loans. These are direct loans granted by investors to the lending companies and are secured by the entire assets of the respective company. In clear terms, this means the lending companies are fully responsible for repaying the loan with all their assets. For this reason, the terms of the corporate loans are significantly longer (18 to 36 months) compared to the financed consumer loans, which only last a few months. The Auto Invest feature as well as the secondary market are planned to be introduced during the course of 2025. Interest income earned from loan financing is generally considered capital gains and must be declared as such in your tax return. Investors should also note that interest earnings from investments through Afranga are usually subject to withholding tax. The withholding tax rates vary depending on the country where the lending company is based. For example, loans from Bulgaria are subject to a withholding tax rate of 10% The applicable tax rate is automatically applied based on the lender’s country of origin. Therefore, the amount paid out corresponds to the net interest. Investors can view both the gross and net interest rates in the loan’s repayment schedule. Through the main menu (Settings > Tax Certificates), investors can download their tax certificates for all previous calendar years. Investors should take a close look at the potential risk factors when evaluating a P2P lending platform and consider them carefully before making an investment. What risks should one expect with Afranga, and how should they be assessed? The Afranga platform, operated by the Bulgarian company “Afranga EOOD”, launched its operations in February 2021. In its domestic market, the platform is supervised and monitored by the Bulgarian financial supervisory authority (Financial Supervision Commission, FSC). No Red Flags present. In September 2023, the Bulgarian financial supervisory authority approved the licence allowing Afranga to operate as a service provider under the European Crowdfunding Regulation (ECSP). This enables the platform to offer its services across the EU under a unified regulatory framework, without requiring a separate authorisation in each member state. Unlike MiFID II-regulated platforms, investors have no entitlement to compensation through an investor compensation scheme. Loan defaults or a potential insolvency of loan originators are also not covered by the regulation. The ECSP regulation does, however, prohibit platforms from listing projects connected to affiliated companies or insiders. Through its regulatory status, Afranga is also required to meet a high standard of compliance and transparency, including the publication of audited financial reports. The ECSP licence requires Afranga to maintain a strict separation between investor funds and the company’s own operating funds. For this purpose, the platform works with Lemonway, which provides individual IBAN accounts for investors. This means that in the event of Afranga ceasing operations, investors retain access to their funds and loan repayments can continue in an orderly manner. Investments offered through Afranga are not covered by a national or European deposit guarantee scheme. Investors should therefore be aware that invested capital is subject to a loss of capital, that returns are not guaranteed and that it may not be possible to recover the full amount invested. The financial stability of a P2P platform is a key risk factor. Is Afranga already able to operate profitably? And what conclusions can be drawn from the balance sheet? Annual Report No financial statement is published for investors. Auditor: Not Available No external audit firm engaged. Standard: Not Available No audited financial statement available. Afranga aims to become profitable and reach the breakeven point by the end of 2025 or during the first half of 2026. Since the platform only began operating under the ECSP regulation at the start of 2025, there are currently no annual financial statements available. Because the P2P platform is still heavily controlled in the background by Stik Credit, it is worthwhile for investors to take a closer look at the financial metrics of that company instead. According to the 2024 financial figures, Stik Credit achieved a record profit of approximately EUR 3.5 million, thereby sustainably demonstrating the profitability of its business model. The balance sheet of Stik Credit also looks very positive, indicating a financially healthy foundation for the company. The equity ratio stands at a strong 54%, the debt ratio at 0.85, and the liquidity ratio at 1.62. Important to note are the increasing impairments for written-off loans, which most recently amounted to the equivalent of EUR 5.1 million and thus made up about one-third of the entire loan portfolio. For comparison: in a conservatively managed consumer lending business, the default rate often falls within a range of 5% to 15%. A rate of over 30% either indicates a very high-risk loan portfolio with many non-performing loans or a conservative accounting policy in which high provisions are made to cover potential defaults. According to Stikcredit, the increase is partly due to growth in the past year, with around 30% more loans being financed compared to 2023, and partly due to the changed loan structure, which may be attributable to a higher proportion of short-term or riskier loans, which in turn has led to higher provisions. Success on Afranga largely depends on the performance of its loan originators. So how does Afranga approach risk assessment in this regard? Following the assessment, financial covenants are defined. For example, the equity-to-debt ratio, interest coverage ratio (ICR), or liquidity reserves. In addition, loan originators are subject to ongoing monitoring (quarterly updates and random checks) to ensure a consistent level of creditworthiness. Regardless of Afranga’s due diligence, investors should review the annual financial statements of the respective loan originators, which are published on the P2P platform. Below is a tabular overview with the current financial figures of each loan originator. Check out the lender overview and comparison page for additional information regarding applied KPIs and their interpretation. So far, no issues have been reported with external loan originators on Afranga. In this section, I have listed the most important advantages and disadvantages of Afranga. What is the preliminary conclusion of this Afranga review? In its first years, Afranga was used exclusively as a tool to finance loans for the Stik Credit Group, an established and profitable fintech company from Bulgaria. This structure represented a calculable risk for investors, which was offered with above-average returns. With the relaunch as a licensed and regulated crowdfunding company, Afranga has gained significant legal and operational security. Technical weaknesses, such as the absence of an Auto Invest feature and a secondary market, are expected to be resolved by the end of 2025. The strategic expansion toward a broadly positioned P2P marketplace opens up new revenue and growth opportunities for Afranga but also increases the risks for investors. While Afranga has a close personal and structural connection to Stik Credit, comprehensive control over external third-party lenders is considerably more difficult to implement. Therefore, investors should examine each lender very carefully. Whether investing in business loans on Afranga is worthwhile for investors primarily depends on their personal strategy and risk tolerance. Those looking for a regulated P2P platform outside the Baltics, with a solid track record and above-average returns, should consider Afranga as a potential alternative.
New investors receive 0.5% cashback on all investments made within the first 90 days after registration. In addition, all investors will receive 1% cashback on all investments in Stikcredit loans until 31 August 2026. Already invested in Afranga? Or looking for similar platforms? Here are three Afranga alternatives from the P2P market. Viainvest: Both platforms are regulated and serve primarily as a financing channel for the lending business of their respective parent company (in this case: VIA SMS Group). The loan offering focuses on unsecured consumer loans from within the European Economic Area. More information in my Viainvest review. Nectaro: A regulated P2P marketplace based in Latvia, operating under MiFID II regulations and backed by an internationally established group. Loans are primarily used to fund the lending operations of the parent company. Affiliated loan originators offer competitive interest rates and a solid track record. More information in my Nectaro review. Income Marketplace: An unregulated P2P marketplace headquartered in Estonia, which markets itself through innovative security features that are designed to protect investors from underperforming loan originators. Attractive combination of high interest rates and high liquidity. More information in my Income Marketplace review. You can find other Afranga alternatives on the P2P Platform Comparison page. Afranga is a Bulgaria-based P2P platform operational since February 2021, where investors can invest in business loans from international loan originators. The platform has been regulated under the EU Crowdfunding Regulation (ECSP) since 2023 and offers returns of up to 16%. Yes. Afranga is supervised by the Bulgarian financial authority (FSC) and has held an ECSP license since September 2023. Investor funds are held in segregated accounts via Lemonway. However, there is no deposit protection scheme. Interest rates range between 10% and 16% depending on the loan originator. Stik Credit typically offers 14% to 16%, while external originators offer 10% to 12%. My personal return on Afranga in 2025 stood at 13.7%. No. Following ECSP regulation, Afranga invests in direct business loans secured by the full assets of the lending company. There is no classic buyback guarantee. Yes. New investors registering via my partner link receive 0.5% cashback on all investments made within the first 90 days after registration. I’m Denny Neidhardt, the founder of re:think P2P. On this blog, I help retail investors make smarter, well-informed investment decisions in the world of P2P lending. Since 2019, I’ve been publishing in-depth analyses, platform reviews, and risk assessments to bring more transparency to this investment space. My goal is to challenge marketing claims, question developments, and empower investors with honest, independent insights.
What is Afranga?
Afranga at a Glance
Founded / Started:
December 2020 / February 2021
Legal Name:
Afranga EOOD (LINK)
Headquarter:
Sofia, Bulgaria
Regulated:
Yes (ECSP License)
CEO:
Svetlin Sabev (February 2021)
Assets Under Management:
Not Available
Number of Investors:
7,000+
Expected Return:
Up to 16%
Risk Score:
6.4 / 10 (Rank 8 of 29) | View Methodology
Primary Loan Type:
Business Loans
Collateral:
Pledge
Business Model
Afranga On-Site Visit
Afranga News
Shareholder and Management
Afranga Shareholder
Afranga Management
Sign Up and Bonus
Afranga Bonus
Investing on Afranga
Loan Offering
SaveSmart
SaveSmart is Afranga’s fixed-income investment product, comparable to the Vaults offered by Monefit SmartSaver.Costs and Fees
Expected Returns
Auto Invest and Secondary Market
Afranga Taxes
Afranga Risks
Platform Risk
Red Flags 0
Regulation and Licence
Segregation of Funds and Deposit Protection
Financial Stability
Profitability
Balance Sheet
Lender Risk
Loan Originator
Year
Audited
Profit
ROA
Equity Ratio
Debt
Liquidity
Impairments
Score
Credirect
2025
Unaudited
EUR 3,48M
52,3%
91,3%
0,10
11,46
60
Lendivo
2025
Unaudited
EUR 170K
4,7%
13,8%
5,80
1,17
38
Lev Credit
2025
Expert Consult
EUR 255K
28,8%
76,2%
0,15
8,58
29,0%
69
Stik-Credit
2025
Unaudited
EUR 2,19M
6,9%
44%
1,27
1,77
55
Swiss Funds
2024
Unaudited
EUR 37K
2,6%
38,4%
1,60
2,13
54
Tiberus
2024
Unaudited
BGN (86K)
4
Advantages and Disadvantages
Summary Afranga Review
Afranga Alternatives
FAQ Afranga Review
