Evidence audit 2026
Company registration, SRO licence meaning, the single default handled in full, insolvency scenario and documentation quality - what the A+ grade rests on.
Maclear AG operates from Zurich under Swiss company number CHE-361.251.084, incorporated in 2021. The platform launched to retail investors in April 2022. Its parent company is KPF Holding AG, a Zurich-based family business founded in 1924 that manufactures precision components for rail, automotive and industrial applications. KPF employs around 170 people across four production sites in Switzerland and Germany, with annual revenue of approximately CHF 45 million.
This ownership structure means Maclear is not a venture-backed fintech burning through funding rounds. It is a diversification project by an established industrial group with physical assets and stable cash flow. The platform's technology and risk management sit within Maclear AG; loan origination and borrower relationships are handled by separate SPVs for each project. You can verify the company registration on the Swiss commercial registry (zefix.ch), and the parent's financial history stretches back a century - both reduce the risk that the platform evaporates after two years.
Maclear is a member of a Swiss self-regulatory organisation under the Federal Act on Combating Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (AMLA). This is not a prudential licence like MiFID II or an ECSP authorisation. The SRO checks that the platform follows know-your-customer procedures, reports suspicious transactions, and maintains adequate internal controls. It does not assess credit decisions, approve loan terms, or guarantee your capital if a borrower defaults.
The practical effect: Maclear must verify your identity before you invest, file annual compliance reports, and submit to periodic audits. If the SRO finds a breach, sanctions range from warnings to expulsion. Expulsion would force the platform to cease operating unless it joins another SRO or obtains direct FINMA supervision (which crowdlending platforms typically do not qualify for). What the membership does not do is protect your money if a project goes wrong - there is no compensation scheme, no deposit insurance, and no regulator-mandated buyback obligation.
This setup is identical for all Swiss crowdlending platforms in 2026. It is less protective than the EUR 20,000 compensation scheme attached to Mintos's MiFID II licence, but more structured than the unregulated status of Robocash or Hive5. Maclear's A+ grade does not rest on the licence alone - it comes from the combination of SRO membership, fund segregation, transparent documentation and the delivery track record.
In June 2023, a Swiss SME borrower with a CHF 180,000 factoring facility missed two consecutive payments. Maclear announced the default publicly on the platform's news feed within 48 hours. The loan was secured against receivables from three corporate debtors. Within 30 days, Maclear's recovery team had collected CHF 152,000 from the underlying receivables. The remaining shortfall of CHF 28,000 plus accrued interest was covered from Maclear's own equity, credited to investor accounts on day 62.
This outcome is documented in investor transaction histories and was confirmed by multiple users on independent forums. The key facts: Maclear did not wait months to communicate the issue, the collateral recovery was efficient, and the platform absorbed the loss rather than passing it to lenders. That decision was commercial, not regulatory - the SRO membership did not require it. But it set a precedent: if you lend through Maclear and a borrower defaults, the platform's first action is enforcement against collateral, and its stated policy (not a legal obligation) is to cover shortfalls where collateral proves insufficient.
One default in four years on a EUR 50+ million cumulative funding volume is a low rate. For comparison, PeerBerry has handled defaults across a EUR 400+ million portfolio with similar buyback discipline, but its loans come from a single affiliated group (Aventus). Maclear's borrowers are independent third parties, which makes the clean record more meaningful - you are not relying on a single originator's solvency.
Every Maclear project page includes the borrower's most recent annual accounts, a signed loan agreement specifying terms and collateral, registration certificates for pledged assets (property land registry extracts, equipment leases, receivables assignments), and an independent valuation report where real estate is involved. Most projects also publish the borrower's business plan and a short video interview with the company director.
This level of disclosure is rare in European P2P lending in 2026. Mintos shows originator-level financials but not individual borrower accounts. Robocash and Nectaro provide buyback promises from affiliated entities but minimal third-party documentation. EstateGuru publishes property valuations but limited borrower financials. Only InRento and Capitalia match Maclear's granularity on underlying assets.
The advantage: you can assess credit risk independently. If a Swiss construction firm is borrowing EUR 300,000 for equipment, you can read its balance sheet, check the equipment's appraised value, and decide whether the loan-to-value ratio makes sense. If you are uncomfortable with the numbers, you skip the project. Platforms that rely on internal ratings or buyback promises do not give you that option - you either trust the platform's judgment or you walk away entirely.
Swiss crowdlending regulations require investor funds to be held in segregated accounts, separate from the platform's operational capital. If Maclear AG files for bankruptcy, your claims on borrowers remain your property - they do not become part of the insolvency estate. An administrator appointed by the Swiss bankruptcy court would work to transfer your portfolio to a successor platform or return the loan documentation so you can enforce claims directly.
The practical risks during this process: you lose platform access for weeks or months while the migration is arranged; small administrative fees may be deducted to cover legal costs; and if no successor platform emerges, you may need to hire a lawyer to collect from borrowers individually (expensive for small claims). The risk you do not face is that your loan receivables vanish because the platform owned them - they do not. Maclear is the intermediary, not the lender of record.
This structure mirrors how investment platforms handle client securities: the shares you buy through an online broker are not the broker's assets, so if the broker fails, you get your shares back (or their value). The same principle applies here, though enforcement is slower because loans are not traded on public markets. The outcome depends on the quality of the underlying collateral and the borrower's solvency, not on Maclear's balance sheet.
If you want deposit insurance or a compensation scheme that covers borrower defaults: Maclear is not the right product. P2P lending of any grade exposes your capital to credit risk with no government backstop. A savings account or AAA-rated government bond is the correct choice.
If you are building a diversified portfolio and want a P2P allocation with transparent documentation and a clean delivery record: Maclear fits. The A+ grade reflects best-in-class execution among European platforms in 2026 - SRO membership, fund segregation, granular project disclosure, one default handled in full, and yields that match advertised rates. It does not mean risk-free, and you should limit P2P exposure to 5-10% of investable assets.
If you are comparing Maclear to unregulated platforms offering 18% yields with no documentation: the difference is not just the grade. It is the ability to read the borrower's financials, check the collateral registration, and see how the single historical default was resolved. That transparency does not eliminate risk, but it allows you to price it. Platforms that publish no borrower accounts are asking you to take risk blind.
For a full breakdown of how the A+ grade is calculated, see the Maclear platform review. For context on what Swiss SRO membership means relative to ECSP and MiFID II licences, read the licences guide. And if you are building your first P2P portfolio, start with the EUR 1,000 allocation framework.
Maclear is a member of a Swiss self-regulatory organisation under the Anti-Money Laundering Act. This membership enforces conduct and AML rules, but it is not a prudential licence and carries no compensation scheme. If a borrower defaults, your money is exposed to that project's outcome - no regulator steps in to cover capital losses. Maclear did cover the single recorded default in full from its own funds in 2023, but that was a commercial decision, not a regulatory obligation.
Swiss law requires crowdlending platforms to segregate investor funds from company operational accounts. Your claims on borrowers remain yours, not Maclear's assets. An insolvency administrator would work to migrate your portfolio to a successor platform or return claims documentation. You lose access during the workout period, and small administrative costs may apply, but the underlying loan receivables do not vanish. The risk is operational friction, not automatic total loss.
Maclear publishes borrower annual accounts, signed loan agreements, collateral registrations and independent property valuations for every project. Most Baltic platforms rely on buyback promises or summarised due diligence PDFs. Only InRento and Capitalia match Maclear's granularity on underlying asset documentation. This transparency allows investors to assess credit risk independently, rather than relying solely on platform-assigned ratings.
The grade reflects five weighted checks: investor protection (30%), delivery track record (20%), yield reality (20%), ownership structure (15%) and exit options (15%). Maclear scores maximum points on delivery (one default, covered in full), yield reality (14.9% realised matches advertised), structure (established Swiss parent, transparent ownership) and exits (no lock-ups, two-week liquidity on most loans). The protection score acknowledges that no compensation scheme exists, but the SRO membership, fund segregation and documentation quality still rank above unregulated platforms. A+ means best-in-class among European P2P sites in 2026, not risk-free.
No. P2P lending of any grade puts capital at risk with no compensation scheme covering borrower defaults. If you require deposit insurance or principal guarantees, a savings account or government bond is the correct product. Maclear fits investors comfortable with credit risk, who want transparent documentation and have diversified portfolios where a 5-10% allocation to P2P lending makes sense alongside other assets.
Which European P2P licences carry compensation schemes, which are AML-only, and what protection you truly get from each regulatory tier.
Full reviewHow the grade is calculated across five checks, how auto-invest works, and where the platform fits in a diversified P2P portfolio.
Portfolio guideThree-platform split, why diversification matters, and how to balance yield against protection in your initial P2P allocation.
Maclear publishes borrower financials, collateral certificates and independent valuations for every project - transparency that matches the A+ grade. EUR 30 bonus on your first EUR 1,000 for new accounts opened through this site.
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