The government is considering a new tax free individual savings account (ISA).
The plan is to create one for people who lend money direct to borrowers over the the internet using peer-to-peer lending sites, adding to the two longstanding ISAs for cash and shares.
Peer-to-peer websites, such as Zopa and Ratesetter, accept money from savers which they then lend out to individuals or businesses.
Often they attract an above-average return, albeit with more risk.
The idea has snowballed: £1.6bn has been loaned through such sites so far.
Chancellor George Osborne announced in this year's Budget that in future the loans would qualify to be included in ISAs, making the interest received tax free.
But there was a question mark over how it would be done. Unlike the bank deposits in Cash ISAs, the new ISA is not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
The lending could also be placed in a stocks and shares ISA, although whether that is suitable will be one of the ideas the government will explore.
The Treasury is launching a consultation on a proposal to create a third and different ISA for peer to peer lending, in a move which could propel the concept into the front rank of financial options.
By Simon Gompertz, BBC News
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