ABSTRACT The new millennium experienced a transformation in the economy, moving from conservative finance institutions to online platforms, such as the Peer-to-Peer [P2P] lending websites. While these platforms gained much interest, they compose a minor share of the private lending sector. Our main interest is to assess perceptions and public attitudes about the perceived risks of lending money through the internet and using P2P lending platform. We conducted a representative survey among 1,108 Israelis, among them 4% (47) who were or are active on P2P lending platforms. The results indicate that the public is ambivalent towards these platforms. On the one hand, respondents felt the platforms are suitable for modern life and offer a form of competition to the conservative banking system; on the other hand, they expressed concern about risks to privacy, risks relating to having loans paid back, and an overall lack of understanding regarding how the platforms work. We found differences between users based on their activity on the platform, gender, income and personality characteristics. In the discussion, we connect these results to the need of the platforms to gain cognitive and socio-political legitimacy.

中文翻译：

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P2P借贷平台在公众和贷款人眼中的合法性

摘要 新千年经历了经济转型，从保守的金融机构转向在线平台，例如点对点 [P2P] 借贷网站。虽然这些平台引起了很大的兴趣，但它们在私人贷款部门中所占的份额很小。我们的主要兴趣是评估对通过互联网和使用 P2P 借贷平台借贷资金的感知风险的看法和公众态度。我们对 1,108 名以色列人进行了一项具有代表性的调查，其中 4% (47) 曾经或现在活跃在 P2P 借贷平台上。结果表明公众对这些平台持矛盾态度。一方面，受访者认为这些平台适合现代生活，并为保守的银行体系提供了一种竞争形式；另一方面，他们对隐私风险、偿还贷款的风险以及对平台运作方式的总体缺乏了解表示担忧。我们根据用户在平台上的活动、性别、收入和个性特征发现了用户之间的差异。在讨论中，我们将这些结果与平台获得认知和社会政治合法性的需求联系起来。