01Returns are XIRR, net, realized
Every platform return is an XIRR (extended internal rate of return) from my own cash flows over the period, plus the current account value as the closing figure. XIRR is the honest measure because it weights every deposit and withdrawal by when it actually happened — unlike a headline "interest rate," which ignores idle cash and timing.
"Net" means after platform fees, currency costs and realized capital gains or losses. "Realized" means I only count money that has actually arrived: paid interest and recovered principal. I do not count the face value of late or defaulted loans until the money is genuinely back.
02Why short-window bond returns look low
Bond coupons don't all pay on the same clock. A large part of my Mintos money sits in bonds, and those pay coupons on different schedules — some monthly, some quarterly, some only twice a year. Because my returns are realized (I count cash actually received), a position full of quarterly and semi-annual payers looks like it's underperforming over a short window: a lot of the interest it has genuinely earned simply hasn't been paid out yet.
Over a five-month slice that understates the true yield, and it corrects itself as the longer-dated coupons land. So read short-window annualized figures for bond-heavy positions — Mintos especially — with that timing effect in mind. It's a measurement artifact, not weak performance.
03How I treat late loans and defaults
A loan that is late is not yet a loss, and a loss is not counted until recovery is exhausted. Until then it's money I'm owed but can't yet spend, and it doesn't count toward a realized return. I'd rather understate a return today and revise it up later than flatter the number and walk it back.
When a recovery finally lands (or a loan is written off), it flows through the realized return for the month it settles. That's why a single month can look lumpy — real portfolios are lumpy.
04Profit since 1 January
The year-to-date profit figure is simple: the change in total portfolio value over the period, minus the money I added or withdrew. For the P2P platforms that's realized interest net of fees, tax and realized capital costs; for the ETF it's the mark-to-market change in the fund's value (unrealized — it moves with the market until I sell). I show them separately so you can see which part is locked in and which isn't. I also add EUR 300 to the ETF every month (dollar-cost averaging); those contributions are deposits, not profit, so they're netted out.
05What I publish
I publish returns and allocations as percentages and — as of now — the euro values behind them. The percentages let you judge the strategy; the euros add transparency. I weigh that against writing under a findable identity, and I'll pull back toward percentages-only if that ever stops feeling sensible.
06Sources and corrections
Every figure traces back to a platform export or statement I hold. If you spot an error or an inconsistency, tell me and I'll correct it in the open — with a note saying what changed.