Manchester fintech teams up with The Co-op Bank to help SMEs with cashflow

Manchester fintech BankiFi has teamed up with The Co-op Bank to offer a new platform aimed at SMEs.

The Incomeing app allows SME users to send secure, real-time payment requests via text, email and Whatsapp, as well as QR codes.

It ensures that funds are transferred into a chosen account immediately, boosting cash flow as well as generating invoices as well as streamlining the process of chasing late payments.

The Co-operative Bank is the first to offer the platform to its micro and small business customers.

Stephen O’Keane, head of customer transformation at The Co-operative Bank, said: “Small and micro businesses have worked incredibly hard to stay afloat this year.

“Even before the pandemic, the pressures of late payments and impact to cash flow was an issue many SMEs were trying to manage.

“In association with Incomeing, The Co-operative Bank wants to help close this gap, not just to support our customers, but go beyond that and support all SMEs with an effective solution.

“The benefit of Incomeing is it’s a simpler but secure way of handling payments that we believe will help many businesses sustain and grow even in these challenging times.”

Mark Hartley, Founder and CEO of BankiFi, added: “Incomeing is ultimately here to support the businesses that represent the backbone of the UK economy.

“SMEs typically wait longer to get paid than bigger businesses, with late payments and time spent on burdensome financial admin placing immense pressure on their survival.

“Being an SME ourselves, we wanted to create a service that helped business owners simplify collecting money from their customers, automate invoicing and bookkeeping, and to receive the money directly into their account – all through a mobile experience that reflects how they operate.”