Most common countries for source of funds checks revealed
Most homebuyers pay in "ordinary ways", but some create a headache, says Thirdfort's Olly Thornton-Berry.
One in ten homebuyers are using funds originating overseas to fund all or part of their purchase, research suggests.
It comes as the client due diligence brand said it has now completed more than one million source of funds verifications through its platform.
Analysis by Thirdfort, based on its own data, found that the five most common countries where money is coming from are India, USA, Hong Kong, Italy and China.
In the past two years, China has moved into the top five, taking the place France held previously.
Thirdfort also monitors the types of funds used. Its data shows that while cash use in society is declining, it has not disappeared from property transactions.
Data points to a market where most buyers are funding a purchase in ordinary, explainable ways.”
Some 9% of buyers have made more than 10 cash deposits into the account funding their purchase in the past six months, and 8% have a median deposit value more than £500.
However, high cash deposits, meaning a median deposit of more than £500, have fallen steadily.
The analysis shows that 9.47% of source of funds verifications met that threshold in 2023, 9.52% in 2024, 7.54% in 2025, and 6.99% so far in 2026.
Cryptocurrency, meanwhile, is having a limited impact. Only around 0.1% of buyers and giftors have funds coming from cryptocurrency, and that figure has held steady since 2024.
Olly Thornton-Berry, co-founde of Thirdfort, (pictured), says: “Our data points to a market where most buyers are funding a purchase in ordinary, explainable ways.
“Meanwhile, there is a much smaller, more identifiable set of transactions that create the biggest headaches with money crossing borders, cash moving in patterns worth understanding and more gifts being made.
“Overall, our analysis helps regulated professionals better understand risk and maintain control.”
