Partner Article

Platform Black announces fixed pricing to promote transparency

11 October, 2016 – Platform Black, a leading online business finance marketplace which connects funders to businesses, has today announced the introduction of fixed pricing across its range of financial solutions. Platform Black introduced fixed pricing in a bid to ensure more SMEs gain access to vital funding with greater clarity of price.

The new initiative comes as part of the firm’s focus on improving the service they provide to both funders and SMEs by ensuring the fees charged for finance and the return that funders will achieve are defined and transparent.

Businesses who are registered on the marketplace can submit invoices and request funding at a fixed price, which is agreed upfront. Funders will then be able to offer finance against the invoice with full knowledge of the return they will achieve. Once the amount of funding required has been reached the auction will close. This enhancement removes the uncertainty around what price the business will pay for funding, which traditionally has been set at a higher rate to attract funders but bid down by competing funders trying to secure the opportunity.

As Caroline Langron, Managing Director of Platform Black said: “This is a significant development in the market and will allow funders to bolster their support for UK businesses. The provision of fixed pricing will speed-up the whole process and provide greater certainty on both price and return, allowing funders to make informed decisions quickly. Our new fixed pricing will also allow businesses looking for funding to access funds more quickly at a pre-agreed rate”.

The new initiative is available with immediate effect for businesses looking to access on average between £5k and £10m of funding and for both Platform Black’s funding solutions: single invoice trading and supply chain finance. Caroline added: “Our robust due diligence on those businesses seeking funding means we can price according to the level of risk associated with each invoice/customer, which provides reassurance to our funders. Fixed pricing categorises invoices as low, medium or high; with this classification, funders can calculate the return on an invoice based on its risk level”.

In August, Platform Black achieved a new funding record, with over £10m of funding transacted, bringing the total amount of funding provided to SMEs to over £144m supporting their growth aspirations.

“2016 has been a fantastic period of growth for Platform Black as we have continued to increase the funding support available to UK businesses. Vital to our success is our ability to provide a safe and reliable outlet for funders, who have the desire to finance business whilst achieving optimal returns. Fixed pricing delivers an improvement to the service we provide for funders, who will continue to support and facilitate UK business growth by securing ongoing funding” Caroline concluded.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Platform Black .