Announcement: Separate private forum
Oct 7, 2017 14:36:19 GMT
jackpease, dorset, and 5 more like this
Post by Admin on Oct 7, 2017 14:36:19 GMT
Forum staff have become aware that a private, invitation only P2P forum is in operation; membership is drawn from this forum and includes many long-standing P2PIF members. While we do not know full numbers, we believe its membership to be in excess of 60+. Knowing this, we believe we have a duty to make this public, and to remind forum users that no post on this forum should necessarily be taken at face value.
Why Are We Making This Announcement ?
We are not inferring or implying any specific action or motive on the part of the private forum members. With a public forum such as ours, there is always the potential for a group of members to co-ordinate outside of public postings. However, given the quantum of membership of the private forum, the potential for co-ordinated behaviours and postings into this public forum and their impact needs to be taken into account. Hence we concluded it was imperative to make this public.
We have invited the members of this group to reveal their membership, their purpose, their charter, and why they believe a separate hidden forum is required, but have been unable to establish that. Apart from apparently “absolute secrecy”, we do know there is an absolute bar on membership by any P2PIF forum staff.
While we do think that some 'Due Diligence' discussions may well be better conducted out of the public eye – and we are investigating how we might expedite that – this clearly does leave a genuine perception problem regarding possible motivation. While we hope that any Due Diligence findings are accurately and rapidly disseminated into this forum, we are in no position to satisfy ourselves to that being the case.
What Does It Mean for This Forum ?
Currently we believe this forum should remain open, including allowing guest viewing. We want it to operate in the spirit of open sharing of information, and where appropriate with dialogue/engagement from platforms. A public facing forum is required in order to attract fresh membership, and to allow interaction with non-lenders. This means we have to operate with certain constraints, which also then takes up considerable volunteer time to maintain. We have considered whether to shut down this forum, not least due to the perceived risk arising from membership overlap, and the potential for difficulties recruiting additional moderators for the forum. However, we have concluded that we should not for the time being.
As mentioned, we are considering a mechanism for a closed door initial Due Diligence section (crucially with staff visibility). We will also be initiating a request for feedback on the operation and moderation of this forum.
We will not respond to any requests to name known co-members.
Why Are We Making This Announcement ?
We are not inferring or implying any specific action or motive on the part of the private forum members. With a public forum such as ours, there is always the potential for a group of members to co-ordinate outside of public postings. However, given the quantum of membership of the private forum, the potential for co-ordinated behaviours and postings into this public forum and their impact needs to be taken into account. Hence we concluded it was imperative to make this public.
We have invited the members of this group to reveal their membership, their purpose, their charter, and why they believe a separate hidden forum is required, but have been unable to establish that. Apart from apparently “absolute secrecy”, we do know there is an absolute bar on membership by any P2PIF forum staff.
While we do think that some 'Due Diligence' discussions may well be better conducted out of the public eye – and we are investigating how we might expedite that – this clearly does leave a genuine perception problem regarding possible motivation. While we hope that any Due Diligence findings are accurately and rapidly disseminated into this forum, we are in no position to satisfy ourselves to that being the case.
What Does It Mean for This Forum ?
Currently we believe this forum should remain open, including allowing guest viewing. We want it to operate in the spirit of open sharing of information, and where appropriate with dialogue/engagement from platforms. A public facing forum is required in order to attract fresh membership, and to allow interaction with non-lenders. This means we have to operate with certain constraints, which also then takes up considerable volunteer time to maintain. We have considered whether to shut down this forum, not least due to the perceived risk arising from membership overlap, and the potential for difficulties recruiting additional moderators for the forum. However, we have concluded that we should not for the time being.
As mentioned, we are considering a mechanism for a closed door initial Due Diligence section (crucially with staff visibility). We will also be initiating a request for feedback on the operation and moderation of this forum.
We will not respond to any requests to name known co-members.
