Innovative P2P financing platform tackles central cash flow challenge
Dubai: Beehive, the UAE's leading online marketplace for peer-to-peer finance, has launched its SME Invoice Financing product to help the thousands of small-to-medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in the country ease cash flow issues and reach their full potential.
The new Invoice Finance solution helps SME businesses boost their working capital and improve cash flow, by unlocking the value of their accounts-receivable to ease the dual challenges of rising inflation and late payments. The service supplements Beehive's existing and growing Business Finance product which has already supported over 10 businesses since launch.
Invoice financing is a rapidly growing tool for SMEs to manage cash flow by closing the gap between the moment a business issues an invoice and when it receives the actual payment.
Beehive has enhanced the process by leveraging its powerful peer-to-peer funding platform to link small businesses with smart investors, offering affordable short-term financing. Businesses will be able to list invoices that are due within 60 to 120 days and receive financing within 24 to 48 hours at rates starting from 0.75% per month, dramatically below alternative means of finance.
"The net result of this is Beehive's promise of win-win: businesses gain fast access to competitive funding, while investors gain attractive short-term returns while diversifying their risk," said Craig Moore, founder and CEO of Beehive.
"Everyone is very excited about the upcoming business finance opportunities we still have in the pipeline. I believe that, with the launch of our new invoice financing solution, larger investors such as funds and asset managers will soon realize that our platform is a great substitute for generating alternative returns, while supporting SMEs in the UAE economy."
SMEs have a particularly difficult time getting financing from banks, whose filing requirements and slower pace can result in considerable funding gaps for SMEs. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) estimates that the current SME funding gap in MENA has reached approximately $260 billion.
Beehive's unique offering helps support the growth and development of the 300,000-plus SME businesses operating in the UAE, serving as a partner in the current drive to achieving regional SME policy targets.
The new service is also reflective of Beehive's goal of revolutionising finance in the UAE, using an online platform to connect established businesses with investors. SMEs win with faster access to lower cost finance and investors win with better returns and diversified risk.
"The launch of Beehive's Invoice Finance solution marks another addition to our ongoing efforts to support SMEs in the UAE economy," said Rick Pudner, Chairman of Beehive. "SMEs represent 90% of total businesses in the UAE but are facing difficulties gaining access to credit as banks generally reject between 50-70% of SME loan applications, hampering growth. Beehive's innovative online platform can help bridge that gap," said Pudner.
Media enquiries
Sherif Shafie
Brunswick
+9714 446 3290
Mohamed Nour
Beehive
+971 4 550 6704
About Beehive
Launched in November 2014, Beehive has rapidly grown into the UAE's leading online peer-to-peer platform. The brainchild of serial entrepreneur Craig Moore supported by Rick Pudner, former Group CEO of Emirates NBD, Beehive facilitates flexible funding solutions for established SME businesses seeking finance of between AED 100,000 and AED 500,000 for up to 3 years.
Individual investors can invest from as little as AED 100 into each business listed on the platform and receive monthly repayments at target rates ranging between 8% p.a and 20% p.a. Beehive undertakes thorough due diligence on each business listed on the platform and the company facilitates the finance agreement between the business and investors, charging a small percentage fee of the finance amount.
Investors are also able to buy or sell their finance parts to other investors on the platform through Beehive's secondary market, giving investors access to a liquid market place where they can trade finance parts, in a similar manner to a bond market.
Beehive has funded more than 10 businesses since launch.
About Peer-to-Peer Finance
Peer-to-peer finance, based on crowd-funding principles, enables Beehive to reduce operating costs and streamline processes to minimise the cost and complexity in finance.
Otherwise known as marketplace lending, peer-to-peer finance funded $9bn in loans globally in 2014 and is forecast to deliver $1 trillion by 2025. It is an increasingly popular form of crowdfunding that is changing how SMEs borrow capital and how investors manage risk and return.
© Press Release 2015
