An SME lender has unveiled its rebranding, the release of a new business lending product, and a partnership with Australia’s largest distribution network for commercial finance – all in the same day.
CML Group, relaunched into the market as Earlypay, designed its new offering to help get SMEs in urgent need of working capital the finance they’re after, and to do so quickly, despite their deteriorated credit quality.
The group has used its acquisition of fintech Skippr in July of this year to enhance its operating capabilities and digitally transform its product offerings, with technology that integrates seamlessly with accounting software, automating processes and broadening the SME market Earlypay can service.
As such, the group’s new offering enables customers to conduct their loan request or finance management process through the Earlypay app, from start to finish, while the credit team conducts credit assessments and invoice-quality approvals in the background.
The “more technologically integrated, streamlined” offering will be made available to SMEs through Australia’s largest distribution network for commercial finance, as Earlypay also last week announced it has entered into an agreement with COG Financial Services Limited.
COG, an asset finance broker and aggregator that holds 16.3% of CML’s shares, can now help facilitate CML product supply arrangements through COG’s broker networks. Stephen White, a director at COG, has been appointed to the CML board.
Earlypay CEO Daniel Riley expressed excitement over the group’s new direction.
“The digital transformation that underpins Earlypay’s new invoice financing product makes the product the most flexible, accessible and easy-to-use option for brokers to recommend to SMEs seeking to access working capital,” he said.
“The average SME in Australia has one third of its revenue tied up in outstanding invoices and is waiting nearly 60 days to be paid, so we designed Earlypay to provide them with a line of credit that is highly flexible and can be utilized in line with sales volumes.”
Earlypay offers SMEs advance payment of up to 90% of a client’s invoice value, taking the invoice as security; the client on-boarding process is conducted within 24 hours – down from its previous 14 days – and settlement of funds occurs within 48 hours of first client contact.
Since 2015, the total value of invoices funded by Earlypay rests at over $6bn, with defaults of less than 0.1%.
“We are proud to offer market-leading flexibility and transparency to our clients, whilst operating a rigorous risk mitigation program via a robust and secured lending model,” Riley finished.
