Fundbox Makes Advancing Outstanding Invoices Available at the Click
of a Button
Intuit Inc. (Nasdaq:INTU) is
partnering with Fundbox to launch a
new product that gives small business owners a simple way to fix their
cash flow by advancing payments for their outstanding invoices within
QuickBooks. This new financing solution enables small businesses to use
their QuickBooks data to boost their cash flow.
The new product transforms the traditional “factoring” system, whereby
small businesses sell outstanding invoices to a third party creditor. In
this new product, small businesses continue to own their relationships
with their customers and manage their invoices without interference. By
leveraging QuickBooks data and not requiring a credit check or any
paperwork, this new solution delivers faster financing, lowers costs,
and puts more money directly in the hands of small businesses.
Highlights of the new product include:
-
Easy Application – The deep integration between Intuit and
Fundbox allows QuickBooks customers to apply in seconds – with minimal
data entry – and get approved in less than 3 hours. Thereafter, users
can advance outstanding invoices with a couple of clicks from within
QuickBooks.
-
Boosting Cash Flow – Small businesses will benefit from having
peace of mind that they have the funds they need to pay salaries,
rent, buy inventory and equipment, travel for business, and more.
-
Reasonable Fees – Qualified QuickBooks customers are given the
option of taking advantage of short-term (up-to 12 weeks) financing
against outstanding invoices. For example, the fee to advance a $1000
invoice is $3 to $5 per week on average.
The QuickBooks Financing Platform
Fundbox will be featured on the QuickBooks
Financing platform, a marketplace of small business finance products
covering the full spectrum of credit offerings including short and long
term loans, lines of credit, invoice financing, credit cards and Small
Business Administration loans.
Intuit data shows that 60 percent of QuickBooks customers have been
denied loans for reasons such as low FICO credit scores. By contrast,
targeted campaigns on the QuickBooks Financing platform have seen a 70
percent acceptance rate. To date, small businesses have secured more
than $260 million in credit through QuickBooks Financing.
Quotes
“This is all about making it is easier for small businesses to access
the short-term financing they need at the click of a button,” said Alex
Chriss, vice president of Intuit’s Small Business Group. “Our
partnership with Fundbox enables us to deliver a financing solution to
our small business customers that streamlines the application process,
offers quicker decision making, and, most importantly, offers fair and
transparent pricing.”
Fundbox CEO Eyal Shinar added, “We are thrilled to become a more deeply
embedded solution within Intuit’s QuickBooks ecosystem - we know
millions of SMBs will benefit from this partnership. Fundbox leverages
deep data analytics, artificial financial intelligence and predictive
modeling to give small businesses credit-on-demand. Combined with the
rich data from QuickBooks, we’re giving small businesses unprecedented
flexibility and control over their cash flow.”
New Research Report: Financing Small Business Success
As part of its ongoing efforts to solve persistent pain points for small
business, Intuit is releasing a new research report, “Financing
Small Business Success”, which shows how online lenders are
reshaping the small business financing market. Highlights include:
-
Small Businesses Use Financing To Fuel Growth – The average
small business loan is $83,000, and the top three uses of financing
are: purchasing new equipment (35 percent), working capital (29
percent), and new production or service space (13 percent).
-
Traditional Application Process Relies on Personal Credit History –
Only a third (34%) of small businesses can access all of the funding
they need from the traditional financing system, which relies on
outdated methods of measuring credit strength. For example, 83% of
businesses with fewer than 11 employees rely on their personal credit
history to apply for a business loan.
-
The Online Lending Process is Faster and More Efficient –
Alternative lending streamlines the application process by enabling
small businesses to use data from sources such as QuickBooks Online to
apply for loans with the click of a button. 77% of small businesses
say they would use a loan application system that makes the process
easier by pulling data lenders need directly from their accounting
solution.
-
Online Lending to Small Businesses Projected to Grow Dramatically – The
study projects that online lending to small businesses will grow from
an existing base of $9 billion in 2015 to $83 billion by 2020, moving
from a mere 1.3% of the small business credit market to 10.5% in five
years.
“Online lenders are filling the void left by traditional lenders who are
reducing their focus on small businesses, particularly loans under $1
million,” said Steve King, partner at Emergent Research, the firm that
prepared the “Financing Small Business Success” forecast. “These new
online players are providing capital to small businesses with greater
efficiency, speed, and convenience.”
QuickBooks Financing Guiding Principles
QuickBooks Financing connects Intuit’s small business customers with
financing opportunities from a network of carefully vetted third party
lenders. By giving small businesses the opportunity to share their
QuickBooks data, partners on the platform quickly and easily can see the
complete picture of the small business. Intuit’s principles help ensure
that small businesses are protected during this financing process so
that they can get back to growing their business. To read more, click
here.
Research Methodology
The research was conducted by Ebiquity
and based on 500 interviews held July 20-27. Research was completed
online among owners and managers of U.S. small businesses that have
attempted, either successfully or unsuccessfully, to secure funding for
their company through business financing channels.
The forecast was prepared by Emergent
Research, based on existing assessments of the small business credit
market outlined in the Harvard Business School paper, “The
State of Small Business Lending: Credit Access During the Recovery and
How Technology May Change the Game.” The forecast assumes moderate
U.S. economic growth averaging 2-3 percent over the forecast timeframe.
About Intuit Inc.
Intuit Inc. creates business and
financial management solutions that simplify the business of life for
small businesses, consumers and accounting professionals.
Its flagship products and services include QuickBooks®,
Mint® and TurboTax®,
which make it easier to manage small
businesses and payroll
processing, personal
finance, and tax
preparation and filing. ProSeries®
and Lacerte® are Intuit's
leading tax preparation offerings for professional accountants.
Founded in 1983, Intuit had revenue of $4.4 billion in its fiscal year
2015. The company has approximately 8,000 employees with major offices
in the United States, Canada,
the United Kingdom, India and
other locations. More information can be found at www.intuit.com.
About Fundbox
Fundbox leverages deep data analytics to accelerate cash flow and
advance invoices for small business. The Fundbox risk engine taps into
numerous data signals within its network to assess customers and
invoices for risk automatically and instantly, allowing small businesses
to choose which invoices to advance with a single click. Technology and
finance industry veterans Eyal Shinar, Yuval Ariav and Tomer Michaeli
founded Fundbox in 2012. Leading Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, finance
veterans, and venture capitalists, including Spark Capital Growth,
General Catalyst Partners, Khosla Ventures, SV Angel, Jeff Bezos and
former CitiGroup CEO Vikram Pandit, back the company.
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