Minerva Lending conducted a survey of 1,000 UK adults aged 36+ with £50,000 and above of investable assets in June 2017.

For investors with more than £50,000 ($66,052), expected rate of return is the most important factor to consider when shopping for an investment provider, according to new data. 

Nearly two-thirds (61 per cent) of investors with this amount of investable assets consider expected rate of return crucial when scouting for an investment provider, according to a survey by Minerva Lending, the fixed-rate bond provider. 

But perhaps surprisingly, just under half (49 per cent) of respondents cite past performance as a “key consideration”, placing this factor in second place on investors' due diligence checklists.

“While some see track record as a fair gauge of future performance, for others the past is clearly in the past and has little bearing whatsoever on likely returns,” said Ross Andrews, director at Minerva Lending. 

Meanwhile, two-in-five - or 41 per cent - of investors polled say the ability to monitor performance and returns online is important to them, underlining the need for investment providers to be digitally-savvy and offer real-time digitised dashboards.

The tie-in period of an investment, which determines the duration before investors can access their money again, is considered a pertinent factor by just under four-in-10 (37 per cent) active investors.