The co-founder and CEO of MarketInvoice has said there will be more collaboration between FinTechs and major banks after announcing a “landmark” new deal with Barclays.
Barclays and MarketInvoice have entered into a partnership to “transform” the way SMEs in the UK manage cash flow and source finance.
It has been hailed as the first Fintech-bank collaboration in the UK, and will involve Barclays giving its customers access to the FinTech’s single invoice finance product as well as broader digital invoice finance facilities.
As part of the deal, Barclays has also agreed to acquire a minority stake in the business.
“When we started in 2011 a lot of the narrative back then was around how FinTechs were going to take on the banks and destroy them – because that’s obviously a controversial message that gets coverage in the media,” MarketInvoice boss Anil Stocker told BusinessCloud.
“What you’re seeing now is quite a lot of collaboration between FinTechs and big banks. Like it or not, these banks still have a huge number of customers so it’s a win-win for both of us. You’re going to see a lot more collaboration with banks and we’re not the only ones.”
Founded in 2011, MarketInvoice has funded invoices worth more than £2.7 billion, boosting cash flow for thousands of UK businesses. Barclays is the first high street bank to enter into a strategic partnership with the company.
Stocker said he was impressed with the quality of the bank’s team, their vision and infrastructure.
“They also know that you can’t do everything at the same time,” he added, referring to the fact that MarketInvoice’s offering will be introduced to Barclays’ SME clients through a phased roll-out.
Stocker says banks have been taking FinTech more seriously since the introduction of open banking – but they’re still under a lot of scrutiny to find a trusted partner.
“They want to partner with a FinTech that has a track record of success not just a brand new start-up,” he said.
Stocker did not rule out the possibility of launching similar partnerships with other major banks, but says his priority is to focus on this one.
“This is the first partnership we’re doing here in the UK so we will devote a lot of energy and resources to making it work,” he said.
“It doesn’t preclude us from working with other banks or even here in UK over time but I think our priority is to make this partnership and if it does then we have a great blueprint to take over to new geographies.”
MarketInvoice currently employs around 85 people at its offices in London and Manchester, around a third of whom are in tech, with that number set to grow beyond 50 over the next few years.