Reckon Snubs The Banks With Prospa SME Loan Deal

Small business accounting firm Reckon wants to help its SMEs access financing — without having to go to the bank. To do so, the company is rolling out Reckon Loans, a new way for its customers to access funding.

The loans will be provided through alternative lending firm Prospa, reports said on Thursday (July 21), and SMEs will be able to access loans between $5,000 and $250,000.

“FinTech disruption has changed the business lending game, with online entrants challenging traditional providers of bank finance by introducing new cash flow financing options for SMEs,” explained Reckon Group COO Dan Rabie in a statement. “Data from accounting software used to elevate cash flow is seen as the best measure of business fundamentals, helping to determine the business’ ability to repay and manage risk during the life of a loan.”

Reports added that, while traditional financial institutions and banks have taken to partnering with alternative lenders, turning them into collaborators instead of competitors, it doesn’t mean banks are out of the woods from the threat of losing market share to marketplace lenders.

In a separate statement, joint CEO at Prospa Beau Bertoli said an integration with Reckon will help speed up the lending process.

“By powering Reckon Loans, we are helping small businesses access faster finance solutions so they can make timely decisions and seize opportunities with piece of mind,” the executive said.

This isn’t the first time Reckon has struck a partnership deal to provide financial services to its small business users. Earlier this month, the company revealed an initiative with PayPal that sees Reckon enabling its SMEs to pay their invoices via a PayPal Pay Now button.

And earlier this year, Reckon announced a deal to acquire SmartVault, a document management company that focuses its services on small and medium-sized businesses.