iZettle Moves To Offer SMB Loans

Britain’s small businesses will soon be able to call on further financial support thanks to the launch of a new banking service from online payments provider iZettle.

The Swedish firm has announced it will be offering loans to businesses through its new iZettle Advance scheme, which gives SMBs access to extra capital by getting an advance on future card sales.

The company says that the service, which is open to any customers that currently use its card-readers, is the first such type of cash advance scheme of its kind for SMBs in Europe, with funds being deposited the following day.

Tailored

“We have aimed to build a financing service that’s completely tailored to the needs of small businesses. The service allows for small businesses to make the necessary investments in their operations, on their own terms and with minimal administration,” said Carl-Richard Häggman, iZettle’s chief risk officer.

The new service will provide a personalised quote for businesses looking to use it based on their previous sales history with iZettle, meaning there’s no need for extra paperwork or security needing to be taken.

Repayments are fully automated and tied directly to the businesses’ sales, so the fewer sales it sees, the less it has to repay, with iZettle saying there is no payback deadline. The advance comes with a fixed fee, and there are no additional fees if the payback takes longer than expected.

“Small companies have persistently been underserved by the traditional finance industry,” said Jacob de Geer, iZettle’s CEO and co-founder. “We want small companies to thrive, and with iZettle Advance we’re applying the exact same logic as when we started iZettle five years ago, and completely overhauled card payments acceptance for small businesses.”

The launch comes as iZettle announced it has closed a €60 million (£43.7m) funding round from Intel Capital, Zouk Capital, and Santander’s investment fund InnoVentures, taking the total amount of capital raised by the company to €147.4 million (£107.5 million).

The company has seen an impressive growth during its five-year lifespan, as businesses flock to use products such as the Card Reader Pro Contactless, which costs just £79 and lets SMEs accept contactless payments, even from wearable devices.

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