FINOM, the European financial services platform for entrepreneurs, has issued its first credit line to a small business in the Netherlands, marking the company's official entry into direct lending. This milestone comes as part of FINOM's pilot on-demand funding program for small and medium-sized businesses.

"We're addressing a critical gap in financing for entrepreneurs and freelancers while maintaining full control over the customer experience and credit quality," said FINOM’s CEO Andrew Petrov. "Entry into lending represents a significant step in our path to build a comprehensive financial ecosystem for European businesses".

FINOM leverages the company's proprietary scoring engine, which combines a wide set of innovative data sources including transactions, behavioral patterns, and digital footprint analysis. This is enhanced by advanced machine learning techniques to train credit scoring and decision-making models. This enables automated credit decisions and delivering responses to borrowers within minutes rather than the days or weeks typically required by traditional lenders. At the same time, FINOM has implemented all necessary safeguards in full compliance with GDPR and the EU AI Act.

The pilot program addresses a critical gap in the Dutch market, where small businesses and freelancers contribute 61% of gross value added to the economy but face significant barriers to accessing credit. Research shows Dutch businesses have lower debt levels and borrow less than their European peers, with new debt to gross value added at just 4% in the Netherlands compared to 16-30% across other EU markets.
 

Key features of FINOM's on-demand funding include:

• Credit lines ranging from €2,000 to €50,000 with six-month repayment schedules

• Decisions delivered within minutes through proprietary AI-powered credit assessment

• Flexible repayment options with no penalties for early repayment

• Simplified application process fully integrated within the FINOM platform

The initial pilot will be available to select existing FINOM customers who have been with the platform for at least three months, with plans to expand across key served markets and to new customers in subsequent phases by the end of 2025.

The initiative is led by FINOM Growth, the company's dedicated credit solutions division. While SME lending in the Netherlands does not require regulatory approval, FINOM maintains that its products and processes adhere to the highest regulatory and ethical standards. The Netherlands pilot serves as a blueprint for FINOM's broader European credit strategy.