Santander UK has partnered with the US financial technology firm Kabbage to give small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) access to same day funding.
Through the new service proposal, which will be offered to a group of customers over the next month, SMEs can get access to new working capital of between £500 and £100,000 through an online process.
Santander will use the Kabbage platform to provide a line of credit. The successful companies can get access to funds within a day, a process that currently takes between two and 12 weeks.
A working capital loan would be an option for SMEs, designed to help in the management of cash flow including overdrafts, invoice finance, asset finance, equipment finance and fixed term loans.
The Kabbage platform utilizes a risk scoring methodology identified by Santander UK’s credit experts, coupled with data collected via other Kabbage ventures, to automate and speed up decisions.
The system also references several external sources such as credit ratings, social media, payments providers, online marketplaces and the SMEs bank account history, both from Santander and other bank accounts held by the organization.
Santander UK CEO Nathan Bostock said: "With SMEs comprising 99% of the UK private sector, having fast and secure access to funds would ensure they can continue to make an important contribution to the UK economy.
"Our collaboration with Kabbage aims to provide UK businesses with the ability to draw down funds as and when required, whether this be covering a short-term funding need or enabling them to seize growth opportunities as they arise."
Image: Santander UK head office, Triton Square, London. Photo: courtesy of Elliott Brown from Birmingham, United Kingdom.