The research aims to assess how rational investors are in making real estate crowdfunding investment decisions and weather similar rationality investors share common individual-level characteristics. The research data was collected through an online survey and investors’ rationality was assessed according to risk & return and behavioral biases criteria. Results revealed that 18% of the respondents were rational and as much as 78.1% of them demonstrated bounded rationality behavior. Further clustering of bounded rationality investors identified three distinct clusters and suggested that bounded rationality proved to be largely based on established behavioral biases rather than on failing to understand and apply risk and return criteria. In terms of individual-level characteristics, rationality of real estate crowdfunding investors significantly related to their financial knowledge, but not to their age, sex, income level, education, occupation, residence and interface with finance sector.

This study explores survey data of investors in peer-to-peer (P2P) lending aiming to assess their investment literacy, how this literacy is affected by their financial socialization and the strength of their social ties, and whether this effect differs among investors’ sociodemographic groups. Our research model was built based on Gudmunson and Danes (2011), Gudmunson et al. (2016) and Potrich et al. (2016). It measured investment literacy, assessing three components — knowledge, skills and attitudes; included multiple socialization agents; and investigated both direct and indirect effects of financial socialization. Descriptive and reliability analysis, confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), t-tests, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and second-order structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis were employed. The results indicate that the investment literacy of P2P lending investors is high. The compound direct effect of financial socialization on the overall level of investment literacy was found to be positive and stronger than on its individual components. Although the strength of social ties had a strong influence on financial socialization, its indirect effect on investment literacy was rather weak. Peers proved to be the main socialization agent and exhibited the strongest social ties with the respondents. The strongest effect of financial socialization on the investment literacy was identified for P2P lending investors in 18–34 years group working in the financial sector with a net monthly income below 1500 euros. The research contributes to the existing literature by providing the methodology and valuable insights into the level of financial literacy among P2P investors and how investment literacy is or is not formed under social interaction in a close social environment.

The digitalisation of the financial system and the rapid growth of new financial technologies arecontributing not only to the change of the financial system, but also to the change of the way people makefinancial decisions. The development of financial technologies has led to the emergence of new financialservices and products, such as P2P lending. With the growth P2P lending market, the scientific literaturepays more and more attention to the analysis of investment intentions through P2P lending platforms and theassessment of the factors affecting the intention to invest (Dja’akum, 2019; Fiorentino et al., 2020; Khan etal., 2021Yang ir Lee, 2016; Poeteri, et al., 2021). It should be noted that, although the interest of researchersin this field is growing, the research in the European context is not sufficient, which reveals the relevance ofthis study. Thus, the aim of the present study is to assess the factors that affect the intention to invest throughP2P lending platforms in Lithuania.A theoretical review of the scientific literature revealed that previous empirical studies have categorised thefactors of the intention to invest through peer-to-peer lending platforms into individual and platform factors.Individual factors are understood as risk appetite, perceived risk, financial literacy, while platform factors areunderstood as perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, trust. Attitude toward behaviour can be seen asboth an individual and a platform factor. Other factors, such as relative advantage, compatibility, complexity,perceived behaviour control are also distinguished in the scientific literature, but are not considered in theanalysis of the intention to invest through peer-to-peer lending platforms.Research data was collected through an online survey. The survey questionnaire was distributed onlinebetween February and April 2022. The survey sample consisted of 211 respondents. The conceptual researchmodel was developed using a Modified Technological Acceptance (TAM) model, which was performed usingthe Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) method.The SEM analysis revealed that the intention to invest through P2P lending platforms was indirectly influenced by the trust of the P2P lending platform, perceived risk and risk appetite factors. The indirect impactwas through attitude toward P2P lending platforms factor, which had a strong and significant positive impacton the intention to invest through P2P lending platforms. The effect of perceived usefulness and perceivedease of use on Lithuanian investors‘ attitudes towards P2P lending platforms was not statistically significant,and therefore no statistically significant effect of these factors on the intention to invest through P2P lendingplatforms was found.

Renata LEGENZOVA -socialinių mokslų daktarė, Vytauto Didžiojo universiteto Ekonomikos ir vadybos fakulteto Finansų katedros vedėja. Adresas: S. Daukanto g. 28, LT-44246 Kaunas, Lietuva; tel. 00 370 37 327856; el. paštas renata.legenzova@vdu.lt Gintarė LECKĖ -Vytauto Didžiojo universiteto Ekonomikos ir vadybos fakulteto Finansų programos magistrė. Adresas: S. Daukanto g. 28, LT-44246 Kaunas, Lietuva; tel. 00 370 37 327856; el. paštas gintare.lecke@vdu.lt Tvarių investicinių fondų veiklos efektyvumo vertinimas Straipsnyje siekiama įvertinti ir palyginti, kaip skiriasi tvarių ir tradicinių investicinių fondų veiklos efektyvumas, bei nustatyti pagrindinių fondo charakteristikų poveikį veiklos efektyvumui. Atlikus tyrimą nustatyta, kad Jungtinės Karalystės ir JAV tvarūs investiciniai fondai turi aukštesnį veiklos efektyvumo lygį, lyginant su tradiciniais investiciniais fondais ir akcijų rinkos indeksais. Taip pat nustatyta, kad pagrindinės tvarių investicinių fondų charakteristikos neturi reikšmingo poveikio tvaraus investicinio fondo veiklos efektyvumui. Reikšminiai žodžiai: tvarumas, investiciniai fondai, veiklos efektyvumo vertinimas. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate conventional and sustainable mutual funds efficiency and determine the impact of the fund's main characteristics on sustainable mutual fund efficiency. The results of the research show that United Kingdom and United States sustainable mutual funds have higher level of efficiency compared to conventional mutual fund's and stock market indices. Also the main characteristics of sustainable mutual funds do not have a significant effect on the efficiency of analyzed sustainable mutual funds.

Research background: Globalization, digitalization and growth of technological innovations trigger development of new financial services, such as real estate crowdfunding. Seeking better return opportunities individual investors often disregard neoclassical decision-making criteria, while behavioral factors, such as social influence, emotions, cognitive abilities are gaining importance. This paper addresses the role of family economics socialization as a complex process by which individuals acquire social skills, knowledge, behavior patterns needed to make investment decision by purposively or spontaneously interacting with their family members. Purpose of the article is to assess if and how family economic socialization impacts on investor behavior in real estate crowdfunding. Methods: Research data was collected through an online survey of Lithuanian real estate crowdfunding investors. Then structural equation modeling technique was employed to investigate the impact of family economic socialization on behavior of real estate crowdfunding investors. Findings & Value added: Findings revealed that majority of real estate crowdfunding investors make bounded rationality investment decisions. Family, as one of the main agents of the economic socialization, does not ensure rationality of the crowdfunding decision-making process. Purposive family economic socialization has no impact on the behavior of investors with bounded rationality, yet it has a significant impact on behavior of rational family members. Spontaneous family economic socialization proved to have a positive and significant impact on the behavior of investors with bounded rationality. Taking into consideration rapid global development of innovative financial services market, such results might be a troubling signal for the product developers and market regulators.