iwoca, one of Europe’s largest small business lenders, has announced a pioneering integration with two of the UK’s largest business finance marketplaces – Funding Xchange and Funding Options.
iwoca’s advanced Lending API (Application Programming Interface) will, for the first time, give small business owners immediate and actionable real-time loan decisions within 30 seconds, opposed to an “approval in principle” typically offered by other business lenders. If the business wants to accept the offer seen on partner sites they are then taken to iwoca to draw down the funds. The integration therefore gives business owners a level of certainty so that they can make quicker decisions based on the available finance and price.
This new technology, initially rolled out for smaller loans (up to £15,000), means iwoca’s partners can offer fully automated, flexible credit facilities to customers from within their own website, resulting in the most seamless marketplace experience available.
iwoca’s Commercial Growth Director, Colin Goldstein, said:
“As consumers we expect seamless experiences when using aggregators to book travel insurance, hotels or to buy a new car – so why should it be any different when small businesses look for finance?
“We are delighted to have launched this market-leading instant decision experience with our close partners, Funding Xchange and Funding Options, and will be rolling this out to other partners in the coming months, as part of our mission to make access to finance fast and simple for small business owners. By giving them immediate and hassle-free credit, we are expanding possibilities so that SMEs no longer have to deal with uncertainty and have the information they need to make better business decisions.”
Alastair Preacher, Chief Product Officer at Funding Options, added:
“Access to much-needed funding for the UK’s 5.7 million small businesses is essential to our economy and today’s news marks a huge industry leap forward. The impact of instant loan decisioning is an excellent example of Fintechs making a real difference at the grassroots of UK business, giving company owners additional clarity when applying for finance and ultimately allowing them more time to run and grow their business.”
Paul Henry, Chief Operating Officer, Funding Xchange added:
“iwoca and Funding Xchange continue to lead the way in delivering the instant, easy to access experience that small businesses want when looking for funding. We have been working with iwoca for the last three years to transform access to funding so that customers using price comparison sites like MoneySuperMarket, or accessing funding through Sage, have the same ease of access and choice that consumers have been accustomed to. We are looking forward to continuing to work with the most innovative lenders to deliver seamless, instant access to funding.”
