YouLend sees 30% rise in UK SME financing before Black Friday

YouLend reports a 30% increase in UK SME financing applications ahead of Black Friday 2024.

YouLend, a major embedded financing platform, has highlighted a rising trend among UK small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) seeking embedded financing solutions amid the lead-up to Black Friday and Christmas sales periods. The company has observed a 30% jump in financing applications, attributed largely to ecommerce platforms.

As the festive season looms, UK SMEs are encountering various challenges such as inventory shortages, staff deficits, and escalating costs. These issues often hinder small businesses from capitalising fully on heightened consumer spending, which sees 72% of buyers planning to make purchases from smaller retailers during this holiday season. This pressure is particularly acute for ecommerce enterprises faced with increased demand and operational hurdles.

Previous Black Friday figures underscore these trends, with UK consumer spending reaching an estimated GBP £13.3 billion in 2023, marking a 7.3% sales increase. Despite robust consumer activity, many SMEs were unprepared to leverage the surge, lacking essential capital.

Embedded finance is proving crucial for SMEs, providing quick and convenient access to capital that helps them manage stock levels, execute marketing strategies, and regulate cash flow. These activities are vital for dealing with seasonal challenges like product returns, order peaks, and refund processes.

Jakob Pethick, Chief Commercial Officer at YouLend, emphasised the importance of these financial solutions. "The strong demand from small businesses around Black Friday has motivated our partners to focus on providing timely and flexible financing solutions tailored to the needs of their small business customers. Embedded finance has proven to be a critical tool for SMEs, enabling them to manage working capital, fill inventory gaps, and pursue growth opportunities during the busy holiday season," he said.

YouLend facilitates seamless access to funding via partnerships with ecommerce and payments platforms. Businesses can apply for funding up to GBP £2 million and receive tailored offers within 24 hours. The repayment mechanism allows SMEs to pay a fixed percentage of future sales, aligning payment amounts with revenue fluctuations.

YouLend's AI-powered, applicant-agnostic decision model improves financing accessibility for SMEs underserved by traditional financial systems. This approach has led to a 90 percent approval rate for applications, considerably higher than the UK market average of 64 percent.

YouLend is a global embedded financing platform for many of the world's largest e-commerce and payments platforms, such as Amazon, eBay, Mollie, Etsy, Shopify, and Paysafe.

Its software platform and APIs enable partners to extend their value proposition by offering flexible financing products in their desired branding to their merchant base without any code or capital required.