South African fintech startup Fundrr has partnered Telkom Business to offer working capital loans to SMEs wanting to grow.
Yellow Pages by Telkom Business aims to fast track the growth of SMEs by offering telecommunication and marketing support, and will now work with Fundrr to also offer loans.
Founded by Idan Jaan and Jarred Noche, Fundrr provides loans of between ZAR20,000 (US$1,400) to ZAR500,000 (US$35,000) in size for three to 12 months in term to South African SMEs, with its seamless onboarding application process taking only eight minutes to submit and requests accepted or denied within 24 hours.
The startup, which secured funding last year, has now partnered with Yellow Pages, a division of Telkom Business that provides support packages that help small businesses develop their online visibility and grow their sales and branding into new markets, to launch the loan offering.
“Online presence is more important than ever, especially during COVID-19. We offer all small businesses access to an online footprint which will enable growth and increased awareness within their sector. One of the biggest challenges for small businesses is access to small business loans, so we have teamed up with an alternative fintech lender for SMEs, Fundrr, to round off our offering by providing a holistic support package,” said Lunga Siyo, chief executive officer (CEO) of Telkom Business, Yep and Yellow Pages.
Fundrr CEO Idan Jaan said the company had realised that new and innovative ways to evaluate small businesses for credit were needed.
“So few SMEs actually qualify for funding and there’s a desperate demand for financial assistance, particularly during this pandemic,” he said.
“There’s insufficient government support available and banks lack the appetite and understanding how to underwrite small businesses. The copious amount of paperwork and long turnaround times preclude small businesses accessing the working capital they require.”
“Consequently, the startup has developed an automated credit model that analyses close to 100 data points that include data sources such as social media presence and online marketing presence to provide a more complete picture of a small business and its growth possibilities. The repayment of loans is also tailored, with Fundrr analysing the cashflow patterns of a business and recommending a repayment structure that best suits their income.
