Alternative finance provider AmeriMerchant heads a list of four companies from distinct markets being rebranded into Capify.
The other companies involved are United Kapital, which is based in the United Kingdom, Australia’s AUSvance, and True North Capital from Toronto, Ontario.
The consolidation makes Capify the first company to provide business loans and working capital products for SMBs in the United States, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom.
“Our official launch of Capify comes at an exciting time as the alternative finance industry is more prosperous than ever and is top of mind for everyone from business owners to Wall Street,” Capify CEO David Goldin said. “We’re proud to finally announce ourselves as one global conglomerate that is one of the first international movers in the alternative finance space, and the only alternative finance provider who can help small businesses with working capital solutions in the USA, UK, Australia and Canada.”
Mr. Goldin started AmeriMerchant in 2002. True North Capital was born in 2007 and was joined by United Kapital and AUSvance the following year, making them the first merchant cash advance provider in Australia.
Mr. Goldin said the companies started as separate entities because they did not want their competitors knowing they were in each of those key markets.
The local approach also appealed to strategic partners, he added.
One such example is in Australia, where AUSvance partnered with Alibaba to offer financing to people purchasing items on the Alibaba platform.
As the four companies became more established in their markets, it became the ideal time to create a single entity, Mr. Goldin said.
“Now anyone from a small company to one operating in two, three or four countries can partner with Capify on joint full-service solutions.”
Mr. Goldin said operating in several countries, comes with challenges, including to API development. For examples, some industries may fare better in one country than another. Different countries also have their own credit card usage rates. There are also unique characteristics with collection methods and defaults in each country, he added.
“Learning the cultural differences takes years,” Mr. Goldin admitted. “Things also move differently in London than they do in a small town.”
It also helps to have local sales and underwriting teams due to their knowledge of each country’s unique cultural aspects, Mr. Goldin said.
Mr. Goldin sees an industry correction coming in as little as six months.
“Then some people will find it is easy to put out money but harder to collect. In a couple of years the number of defaults could put some people out of business.”
With 13 years in the business, Capify has the knowledge to successfully survive the inevitable downturn, Mr. Goldin said.
“Some companies are simply technology brokers that simply match parties but take no risk. They have no skin in the game.”
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