Playter, a buy now – pay later (BNPL) startup, has raised a $1.7 million Seed round, according to a statement from the company.

Playter is a London-based platform that aims to help startups scale quicker with BNPL invoicing. The round was co-led by global investment firm Fin Capital and 1818 Ventures, with participation from RLC Ventures, and investment network Angels. Marc Cohen, Partner at 1818 Venture Capital, has joined the Playter board.

Playter reports that it has grown over 1,000% in size and revenue in recent months. The company did not provide specific metrics.

Jamie Beaumont, founder and CEO of Playter, said that accessing funds for businesses can be complex and time-consuming but they want to fix that.

“Our subscriptions offer clients access to easy, fast and affordable funding to spread their services into manageable payments. We’re helping businesses increase their liquidity and stretch their cash flow further and for longer.”

Playter explains that it reduces a business’ burn rate, by allowing smaller firms to take control of all payment terms regardless of the supplier. Instead of businesses being only allowed to use BNPL for their online purchases, Playter will allow startups to use it on their own services expenses and free up capital that can be used to invest in growth.

“We’ve designed this platform for businesses who want to convert their invoices into smaller, more manageable payments and take advantage of upfront discounts. We’ve effectively given businesses full control over how they use BNPL in their growth,” said Beaumont. “Playter allows innovators to scale at speed with fast, flexible funding. We’re shaking things up for the B2B BNPL space and beyond.”

Founded in 2021, Playter allows businesses to unlock up to £300,000 with no interest costs or revenue sharing with a subscription fee starting from £550 per month.

Henry Cashin, Head of Europe at Fin Capital, commented:

“We are excited about the new generation of B2B embedded BNPL FinTechs in the wake of the success of Klarna, Affirm, and Block/Afterpay. We are bullish on what the team at Playter is building and the great early traction they are seeing. B2B embedded BNPL is the next big wave in this space and we look forward to supporting Jamie and the team as they scale.”

Playter’s model is designed to allow SMEs to apply in just five minutes and access funds in as little as 24 hours from gaining access to the platform.

PostNord Strålfors, the market-leading player in Customer Communication Management, and the largest distributor of invoices in the Nordic region, has chosen Tink, Europe's leading open banking platform, as its open banking payments technology provider.

PostNord Strålfors is part of PostNord Group, a leading provider of parcel and logistics services to, from, and within the Nordic region.

Tink’s payment initiation technology will allow PostNord Strålfors to add cutting edge open banking powered payments to its Nordic omnichannel offering. 

With the new partnership, Strålfors and Tink will transform how invoices are paid and handled in the Nordics. The aim is to create a superior user experience by streamlining           the payments process for consumers, reducing the time and effort it takes for people to stay on top of their finances. At the same time, it also ensures simplicity and cost efficiency for      the company or invoice sender receiving the payment. 

“We are very pleased with the new partnership with Tink, the leading player in open banking and A2A payments. Today, we handle hundreds of million invoices annually for our customers in the Nordic region. With open banking (PSD2), we see it as a natural development of our offer to now also be able to offer our customers simple, compliant and user-friendly payment solutions integrated in our already existing channels”, says Mattias Norén, Head of Strategy and Business Development at PostNord Strålfors.

Tom Pope, Head of Payments and Platforms at Tink added: “We are proud to be partnering with one of the market leaders in the Nordics, to deliver a payments service that will be a touchpoint for millions of people and transform the way everyday bills and invoices are paid. We are at a tipping point for the mass adoption of open banking payments across Europe, and partnerships like this one with PostNord Strålfors is further proof of that fact”.

Enhanced program serves the growing Freshworks community of more than 500 resellers and 350 independent software vendors

Freshworks Inc., a software company empowering the people who power business, announced the launch of an enhanced partner program and the appointment of Hervé Danzelaud as vice president of Global Channel and Alliances to lead the growth of the company’s partner ecosystem. Danzelaud previously served as the head of Channels and Alliances for North America.

“Freshworks was created to deliver immediate value to companies who have found legacy software too complex and expensive for today’s users. Our partner program attracts technology companies, resellers, system integrators and MSP that recognize the market need for native cloud solutions that are simple, affordable and easy to integrate,” said Danzelaud. “My passion is to build deep relationships with partners where we can work together to delight our joint customers with modern CRM, IT and CX solutions.”

Today, the Freshworks partner program includes 500+ resellers in 50+ countries, 20+ systems integrators, 350+ ISVs and 1,100+ technology applications in the Freshworks Marketplace.

The enhanced Freshworks partner program builds on its industry-leading enablement, marketing and lead generation benefits making it easier than ever to partner with Freshworks while adding value to joint customers.

• Freshworks Makes Partnering Easy During the Deal Process
  • A new partner relationship management system offers greater visibility into deal registration, pipeline, commissions, sales and marketing assets, and market development funds. Free enablement and supporting certification alignment with sales, pre-sales and implementation roles
• Program Tiers and Certifications Add Value to Freshworks Partners
  • Three existing tiers for our resellers and solution partners include: Preferred, Authorized and Registered
  • New certification framework for systems integrators offers a more consistent and delightful customer experience
  • Dedicated in-region resources for Preferred partners to grow joint business
  • Collaboration with account executives in the field to drive expansion and collaboration in mid-market customer segments

Partnerships are an extension of the Freshworks promise to deliver modern and easy-to-use software for customer support, IT, sales and marketing teams. AWS, Pink Elephant, Device42, Flycast Partners, i4 Asia Inc., B-TRSNFRMD and more have partnered with Freshworks to enhance and extend the Freshdesk, Freshservice, Freshsales and Freshmarketer product lines to their customers.

Device42 Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Raj Jalan said, “The technology partnership we enjoy with Freshworks is really important to us. The pairing of Freshworks software with ours allows us to solve critical IT service management and lifecycle use case challenges for our customers.”

Flycast Partners North America Vice President of Sales, Richard George said, “Our partnership with Freshworks has allowed our organization to become more diversified in a very competitive market space. From onboarding us as a customer, to execution of service engagements, the Freshworks team has engaged with us for continuous input on processes and execution which is refreshing to say the least.”

i4 Asia Inc. Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Selwyn Uy said, "Being a Freshworks Partner for over six years has helped us delight customers, with the help of a supportive team, flexible products and a partner ecosystem that allows for growth via comprehensive knowledge sharing between partners. We have grown at 40% year-over-year and look forward to many more wins in the future, together.”

B-TRSNFRMD North America Founder and Managing Partner, Gans Subramania said, “It’s always been a great experience to partner with an organization where the brand speaks for itself. The support that we have received has always been open and transparent. The focus and commitment of Freshworks partnerships team continues to impress us.”

Loupen Software Co-CEO, Alexandre Schio said, “As one of Freshworks' first few partners globally and also in Latin America, we have seen the demand quickly increase in the region for Freshworks' easy-to-use and made-to-delight products. Today, we are proud to serve a major share of Freshworks' customers in Brazil. Our YoY revenue continues to grow at a healthy 40% and our team has over 50 employees dedicated to Freshworks' growth. We look forward to expanding the team and our customer base across different industries in Brazil."

The new program is being rolled out incrementally throughout 2022. For more information, click here.

JPMorgan Chase continues to monitor the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine to consider how we can best deploy our resources to meet growing and changing needs in the region. The situation has continued to intensify, with more than 2 million refugees fleeing their homes and millions more predicted to be displaced as the conflict unfolds.

To support humanitarian relief efforts, we are increasing our commitment to a total of up to $5 million. This total commitment includes our initial $1 million announced last week, an additional $2 million, and matching our employee contributions. Our commitment will support a number of organizations working to provide emergency food, housing and medical services to those in need including International Medical Corps, United States Fund for UNICEF and World Central Kitchen.

Our thoughts remain with the innocent civilians who are suffering, and those individuals and families in neighboring countries and around the world who have been impacted. We will continue to monitor the situation and stay connected with employees in affected areas.

Scorching-hot inflation will continue to support Bitcoin prices in the coming months as investors await a crucial statement by the U.S. Federal Reserve on Wednesday, affirms the CEO of one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory organizations.

The comments from Nigel Green of deVere Group, a game-changing financial giant, come amid a flurry of tweets from Elon Musk, the co-founder and CEO of Tesla and the richest person in the world, over the weekend regarding cryptocurrencies.

“As a general principle, for those looking for advice from this thread, it is generally better to own physical things like a home or stock in companies you think make good products, than dollars when inflation is high,” Musk said via Twitter as part of a conversation with Bitcoin bull Michael Saylor. “I still own and won't sell my Bitcoin, Ethereum or Doge.”

Nigel Green observes: “The Federal Reserve’s plans for the first interest rate hike since before the pandemic has been well signalled in advance of the official announcement on Wednesday, and it has been priced-in by the markets.

“However, investors will be closely monitoring the U.S. central bank’s statement and analysis for guidance on how it stands on the war in Ukraine and how this could impact the trajectory for other interest rate hikes this year.

“I believe that Fed Chair Jerome Powell will probably concede that growth could be negatively impacted, and already scorching-hot inflation will remain a cause for concern.”

Russia’s attack on Ukraine, and the subsequent sanctions, have triggered a rally in commodities that has further fuelled inflation. Last month’s U.S. consumer price index was up 7.9%, and some experts are now predicting rising petrol prices could send it above 9% this month.

“As inflation continues to run hot in the coming months, the price of Bitcoin will continue to be supported as investors look to protect their purchasing power by moving out of cash and into store of value investments,” says the deVere CEO.

“Bitcoin is regarded as a credible hedge against inflation for three key reasons. First, its scarcity - a limited supply of 21 million means that higher demand will push prices up. Second, its accessibility - as an asset it has value and is accepted by the market. And third, its durability - Bitcoin will continue to attract more demand over time.”

Nigel Green concludes: “The Fed – the world’s most influential central bank – is likely on Wednesday to warn of the continuation of surging prices due in part to Putin’s war in Ukraine.

“This will be bullish for Bitcoin as it will intensify the flight from cash and other assets from investors looking for a reliable inflation shield.”

Payday loan companies have made millions of pounds worth of unaffordable loans over many years. The Claims Management Company TheClaimsGuide.com is seeing faster responses for complaints against payday lender Lending Stream.

Since the introduction of high-cost loans, lenders have made money by lending to borrowers at extortionate interest rates. This led to huge profits for the lenders who expanded aggressively. One issue with this is that many borrowers who resort to using high-cost loans do so because they can't afford to borrow. This is partly why the lower-cost lenders won't lend to them.

The Financial Ombudsman (FOS) states regarding affordability: "The relevant rules, regulation and guidance all refer to a borrower being able to sustainably repay any credit provided. And being able to sustainably repay credit is described as doing so without undue difficulty, while being able to meet other commitments and without having to borrow further."

To grow faster, many payday lenders did not perform the proper checks required to ensure the loan was affordable. These checks should not only be based on the borrower's responses to income and expenditure, as this is sometimes misstated. Lenders should be making their own checks (e.g. viewing bank statements) to ensure the borrower isn't getting into financial difficulty.

The claims made against high-cost lenders for irresponsible lending have led to financial problems for many previously profitable lenders. This includes the high-profile collapse of payday lender Wonga in 2018. More recently there have been ongoing difficulties with guarantor lender Amigo Loans, who are trying to set up a scheme to survive. Morses Club has also recently announced an increase in claims against them, following a controversial CEO departure and sale of his shares.

The FOS make the final decision on any claim where the lender and borrower can't agree. Among the lenders with a high uphold rate by FOS is Lending Stream. Lending stream is a high-cost payday lender that offers short-term loans of £1,500 with an APR as high as 1,333%. In their latest numbers, the FOS upheld 70% of complaints against Lending Streams owner Gain Credit LLC. This compares to an average of 47% for all banking and credit claims.

TheClaimsGuide.com is seeing quick settlements and payouts for many Lending Stream claims, meaning more customers don't have to wait long periods to receive their payout. This is partly because the lender has decided to settle claims themselves and avoid them going to the FOS, resulting in a fee for the lender.

Ventura Securities - a leading financial services company, announced a major strengthening of its online digital strategy as it moves towards its next phase of growth by appointing Mr. Manu Monga as Executive Director. In this role he will be responsible for strengthening the company’s digital capabilities and will lead next phase of growth for the company with a digital first approach.

Commenting on the appointment, Hemant Majethia, CEO at Ventura Securities Ltd said, “Digital has been the key area of growth for Ventura and will continue to be so. He has a clear vision for the future of digital, marketing and innovation and can strengthening a strategic team to execute the vision at Ventura. We are delighted to on-board Manu and we believe his extensive experience and domain knowledge will add tremendous value to the organisation. We look forward to extending our support in his journey.”

Talking about his new role, Manu Monga, Executive Director, Ventura Securities Ltd, said, “The last two years has truly been transformational for the financial services sector, digital has totally changed the way consumers interact and engage with service providers. I look forward to working with a fantastic team of industry veterans who have built a solid foundation for Ventura to digitally pivot from. The tail winds are with us and this is the right time to accelerate the digital growth agenda”

Manu has more than two decades of diverse experience ranging from working for some of the largest financial services companies to the start-up space. His work portfolio consists of launching a online travel start-up, setting up direct to consumer growth channels and digital innovation. In his last assignment, Manu worked with Axis Bank for more than 7 years as Senior Vice President, Digital Banking and Transformation handling New Product Development, Growth, and Marketing. Prior to Axis, Manu has many experience in other companies like Musafir.com, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, Spice telecom.

Deployment aims to significantly improve loan approval rate and automated decisions\

Leading global AI-powered credit decision platform provider Scienaptic AI announced today that Community Choice Credit Union has chosen its AI-based underwriting platform to provide enhanced and faster credit decisions for its members.

Community Choice Credit Union is a financial institution in constant and persistent pursuit of providing unexpectedly delightful experiences to its members, its employees and its communities. Guided by the “UNbanking” spirit since 1953, Community Choice has become trusted as the beacon for financial product and service gratification for over 50,000 Central Iowans. It allows members to “UNbank” with a blend of retail stores and digital channels offering a full smorgasbord of consumer and business solutions. By using Scienaptic’s AI-powered loan decisioning platform, the credit union aims to serve its members better and faster and help bring in more members under its financial umbrella.

“We’re a company of innovative, fun-loving, member-focused misfits, delivering unexpectedly delightful member experiences,” said Brian Curtin, Chief Lending Officer at Community Choice. “In Scienaptic, we see a partner whose mission, vision and culture uniquely align with ours. With Scienaptic’s AI-powered credit underwriting platform, we will be able to better serve members offering them the finest ‘UNbanking’ experience. Scienaptic’s AI will automate and personalize loan decisions allowing us to enhance credit access and offer a delightful experience to every member.”

"We are driven to improve the financial lives of the members Community Choice serves through credit empowerment and personalized decisions,” said Pankaj Jain, Co-founder and President of Scienaptic. “In our shared passion to ‘Wow’ members and exceed their expectations, we feel privileged that our AI will increase credit access and support Community Choice members in fulfilling their dreams.”