Biz Builder Mike

You can't sail Today's boat on Yesterdays wind - Michael Noel

small businesses

Crowdfunding Platform For Alternative Investments Supervest Now Seeking Funds Through SeedInvest Round

Supervest, a U.S. crowdfunding platform specifically for alternative investments, is now seeking funds through its crowdfunding campaign on SeedInvest. The company describes itself as a technology platform created to bridge the gap between brokers, syndicates, and funding companies.

“Supervest is an online, crowd-funding platform that allows accredited investors to tap into the high yield potential of Merchant Cash Advance (MCA).   We connect our high-quality community of investors with our stable of funding partners in order to provide working capital to small businesses across the United States. The ability to invest, participate, or syndicate in this area has been traditionally reserved for the merchant cash advance companies and ‘insiders’ of these companies.  We have leveraged our experience and knowledge of the industry with the power of our fully integrated platform to give our funding partners the ability to tap into a stream of  capital to fund qualified merchants.”

Supervest further revealed that ots proprietary technology allows its investors to target the businesses, credit quality, and terms of the opportunities they wish to participate in.

“Additionally, our funding partners can tap into our data and use our artificial intelligence to help determine how to better price their deals.”

Supervest is offering securities under both Regulation D and Regulation CF through SI Securities, LLC (SI Securities). The company added:

“Investments made under both Regulation D and Regulation CF involve a high degree of risk and those investors who cannot afford to lose their entire investment should not invest. Furthermore, this profile may contain forward-looking statements and information relating to, among other things, the company, its business plan and strategy, and its industry.”

So far, Supervest has raised nearly $150,000 through its SeedInvest round, which is set to close at the end of April.

Have a crowdfunding offering you’d like to share? Submit an offering for consideration using our Submit a Tip form and we may share it on our site!

Source

Amazon Launchpad Teams Up with Indiegogo

Today we’re excited to announce that we’ll be working with Amazon Launchpad to help successful Indiegogo campaigns become flourishing small businesses.

Amazon Launchpad can help new brands, entrepreneurs, and startups overcome many of the challenges associated with launching new products by using Amazon Launchpad’s marketing tools, ecommerce expertise and unique benefits to increase visibility of their current products so they can focus their attention on new innovations, expansion, and what’s next for their business. Launchpad looks for disruptors, innovators and builders with differentiated products or interesting brand stories.

Amazon Launchpad is now featured on the Indiegogo Experts Directory, and directs qualified Indiegogo campaigns to fill out a Launchpad application. Successful Indiegogo campaigns are encouraged to apply for Amazon Launchpad and will be reviewed for potential inclusion in the Amazon Launchpad program.

By teaming up with Indiegogo, Amazon Launchpad can become the next step in the lifecycle for select Indiegogo campaigns.

“Amazon Launchpad is a great program for Indiegogo campaigns to continue their post-campaign product launch journey,” says Andy Yang, CEO of Indiegogo. “We’re excited to give Indiegogo campaigners another tool to succeed.”

“Indiegogo is a platform for entrepreneurs and consumers to unite around unique product ideas,” says Nick Love, Director of Amazon Launchpad. “This aligns with our mission to do the same. We’re thrilled to see all the innovative products we can support and help showcase to Amazon customers.”

Stay tuned for a special online event hosted by Indiegogo and Amazon Launchpad in March! Join the waitlist now to reserve your spot.

To learn more and connect with Amazon Launchpad, visit the Experts Directory and fill out an application form.

<!–

Comments are closed

–>

Source

SME Lender October Confirms that French Government has Extended State-Guaranteed Loans Program to June 2021

European online lender October notes that in March 2020, the French State had announced a package of €300 billion in State-guaranteed loans (PGE) in order to support small and medium-sized enterprises during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following the amendment voted on in April 2020, lending marketplaces like October had been eligible or qualified to take part in these French state-guaranteed loans schemes and were offering state-guaranteed loans to qualified borrowers.

Since the introduction of the first state-guaranteed loan on October’s platform in June of last year, 68 French state-guaranteed loans were reportedly funded by institutional and retail lenders for “a total amount of €13,167,000 and new loans will be granted in the coming months, following the government announcement to extend the guarantee program until June 2021,” October confirmed in a blog post.

In December of last year, the French government had also announced a modification or change to the repayment scheme for these initiatives. Companies or businesses that would like to delay the capital repayment of their state-guaranteed loan are now able to request a 1-year “additional deferral to their creditor, who will choose to grant it or not,” the October team noted.

While commenting on the initial repayment scheme, the October team explained that the state-guaranteed loans are different from the standard loans available on their platform. The characteristics of these loans (for instance, the duration, interest rate) have been “set by the French government,” October confirmed.

They also noted:

“French state-guaranteed loans are initially 12-month deferred loans with payment of interest (2%) and principal at the end of the loan. However, what makes the state-guaranteed loan unique is that the borrower can decide to extend their loan after the first 12 months, with a higher interest rate.” 

At the conclusion of this period, the borrower has the following options: loan fully repaid after 12 months; duration extended after 12 months with no capital repayment; duration extended after 12 months with partial capital repayment (Note: for more details on these options, check here.)

While discussing the new repayment scheme, the October team noted that following an announcement from the French Ministry of the Economy and Finance (on December 14, 2020), all firms that had been issued a state-guaranteed loan (regardless of their activity and size) may apply for “an additional one-year deferral to start repaying the capital of their state-guaranteed loan.”

October’s management further noted:

“If a borrower wishes to extend their loan, they can now ask October for the extension of the deferral period for another 12 months, during which the company would repay only interest every month, followed by an amortization period of up to 4 years, during which the borrower would repay both capital and interest (i.e. the maximum duration to fully amortize the loan remains 5 years).”

They also confirmed that the interest rate “applicable during the additional 12-month deferral period is between 3.71% and 4.91% depending of the project rating.”

They also mentioned that when applying for the extension of the deferral period, the borrower will have to “indicate whether they will repay their loan immediately at the end of the deferral or whether they will spread the repayments over several years (in that case, they will also need to state the duration of the amortization).” If the company “decides to spread the capital repayment after the extra deferral period, the loan will be repaid through annuities, with an interest rate comprised between 3.71% and 4.91%.”

The October team clarified:

“Contrary to the extension of the amortization period for a period of 1 to 5 years, this extra deferral period is not granted automatically. October will study the applications on a case-by-case basis and will verify the company’s need to request the extra deferral period by requesting additional documents, studying the impact of Covid-19 on the company’s sector…If the October Committee accepts the application, we will ask the October lenders to vote.”

While commenting on what these changes mean for retail lenders, October noted that if a firm you’ve financed requests the extension of the deferral period for their state-guaranteed loan, then you will be “notified by email and request to vote on the additional deferral period.”

And if the majority of institutional and retail lenders (in volume lent) “votes in favor of the additional deferral period, the extra 12-month deferral will be granted and the company will only repay interest during that time.” The interest rate you’ll get “will be increased.” The new repayments will be “displayed in [the client’s] portfolio, on the Future Transactions tab.” From June 2021 onwards, October confirmed that they would begin receiving “some extension requests from borrowers who were granted a state-guaranteed loan.”

Not all firms may request the “additional” deferral period, but still you should be “prepared in case that happens,” the lender noted. It also mentioned that the platform’s management is available for questions you might regarding this change or update.

Source

Southeast Asia’s Funding Societies, an Online Capital Formation Platform, Reports S$2 Billion in Business Financing Disbursals

Southeast Asia-based Funding Societies, a digital financing platform, has revealed that it has made S$2 billion (appr. $1.5 billion) in disbursals of business financing to SMEs across the region as the company enters its sixth year of offering loans.

Funding Societies’ management noted that the amount is partly crowdfunded by more than 200,000 retail investors on its platform and has been disbursed through 3.7 million+ different loans.

Funding Societies reported S$ 850 million (appr. $640 million) in disbursals last year, meanwhile, its platform default rate managed to stay below 2% during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In an effort to reduce its portfolio risk during 2020, Funding Societies had tightened up its credit underwriting criteria so that only quality notes would get crowdfunded. The platform also focused on companies that were likely to do well during the pandemic.

These high-performing industries include healthcare, medical supplies, transportation, among several others. Funding Societies reported an 18% growth in platform investors since January 2020.

Big Four auditing firm Ernst & Young’s 2020 ASEAN SME Transformation Survey has revealed that 68% of the surveyed 1,200 SMEs across the six major ASEAN nations (Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam) are open to doing business with non-traditional lending platforms.

Non-traditional lenders may be appealing because of their greater speed and convenience. Small and medium-sized enterprises may prefer the faster and more flexible loan approval process and the digital know-your-customer (KYC) processes, which usually don’t require asset security or visiting physical bank locations.

At present, there’s an annual trade financing gap of approximately $150 billion in Asia, according to estimates provided by the Asian Development Bank. Around 60% of firms have had their applications rejected when applying for trade financing, the bank noted, while pointing out that these businesses did not proceed with the trade due to the lack of funding.

Kelvin Teo, Co-founder and Group CEO of Funding Societies, stated:

“We’re thrilled to reach this major milestone before we even realised it. It is a momentous occasion and encouragement for us. There is much more to do, as we continue to serve the needs of SMEs and Investors in the region. We’re grateful to raise Series C funding last year, enabling us to further help SMEs even amidst uncertain times.”

As reported earlier this month, Singapore based Funding Societies had announced the expansion of operations into Thailand. The online capital formation platform will operate under a crowdfunding license authorized by the Thai Securities and Exchange Commission.

According to a note from Funding Societies, the company worked for more than a year with regulators to set up operations in the country.

Funding Societies currently operates in Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Thailand will be the fourth country where the marketplace will operate in its six years of activity. Funding Societies notes that it is the only SME digital financing platform in Southeast Asia to be licensed in four countries.

Source

Global Microlending Market Is Projected to be Valued at Over $340 Billion by 2027, with Funding Circle, Kabbage, Others as Key Players

The global micro-lending market is projected to reach a valuation of $343.84 billion by 2027, according to a new report.

The expected increase in adoption of microlending in developing countries may improve consumers’ lifestyle or standard of living. The anticipated shift from traditional lending to micro lending may reduce operational costs and lower market risks, the report noted.

Based on providers, the banking segment held the “major share” in 2019. By region, the market across the APAC area should remain “lucrative” during the forecast period (until 2027).

As mentioned in the report by Allied Market Research (AMR), the global microlending market was valued at around $134.35 billion in 2019 and is on track to surpass the $340 billion mark by 2027 (a CAGR of 12.6% from 2020 to 2027).

As noted in the report:

“High interest on small amounts and shorter repayment [schedules] … by micro lenders [could] restrain the growth to some extent. [But the] adoption of advanced technology in micro financing is projected to create lucrative opportunities in the near future.”

While highlighting some key developments, as they may relate to the Covid-19 outbreak, the report from AMR confirmed that the pandemic led to the shutdown of many micro and small businesses. This has negatively affected the global microlending market, the report added.

It also mentioned that the worldwide pandemic situation also “hampered the cash flow of several business operations, which in turn paved the way for lucrative opportunities for the frontrunners in the industry.”

The AMR report further noted that the Micro Finance Institute (MFI) segment may register the fastest CAGR of 14.0% from 2020 to 2027.

Based on end-users, the small enterprises’ segment represented almost 40% of the total market revenue during 2019 and is projected to grow steadily until 2027 (at least). Notably, the solo entrepreneurs or self-employed segment on track to record the fastest CAGR of 13.9% during the forecast period.

Based on geography, the APAC region generated the “major share” in 2019, garnering around “half of the global microlending market,” the report revealed. The same region is also expected to register the fastest CAGR of 13.0% by 2027. The other world regions analyzed in the report include North America, Europe, and Latin America.

Some of the key market players operating in the microlending industry include Accion International, BlueVine, Inc., Fundera, Inc., Funding Circle, Kabbage, Inc., Kiva, Lendio, LENDR, OnDeck, and StreetShares, Inc.

These industry players have adopted several key strategies such as forming strategic partnerships, expanding or diversifying their products, collaborating with other firms, and launching joint ventures.

As reported recently, New Delhi based SATYA MicroCapital, a microlending firm, secured over $21 million in additional funding.

As covered, Indonesia’s social security program provider, KMSB, has partnered with Logiq to offer microlending services to local residents.

Source