Banking & Fintech Solutions
Unitek Teams Up with LoanGuru to Support SMEs During the Pandemic and Beyond
We’re thrilled to announce that Unitek’s partnership with LoanGuru Business Finance went live on 10 May 2021!
Keep reading to learn how LoanGuru harnessed our automation solutions to ensure that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can quickly and easily access the funding they need to stay afloat throughout the pandemic — and beyond.
About LoanGuru
LoanGuru is an innovative, fast-growing brokerage providing business loans and equipment finance to SMEs in Ireland and the UK.
The company was founded in 2019 as an alternative to traditional business financing. The goal was simple: to provide entrepreneurs with fast, simple, and hassle-free financial services so that they can take their business to the next level without waiting forever to get approval.
The Challenge
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the team at LoanGuru faced a unique challenge. They had to figure out how to extend new credit lines and loans to SMEs faster and easier to help businesses meet their bottom lines in an increasingly uncertain economy.
While LoanGuru’s workflows were a far cry from the notoriously time-consuming protocols of traditional lenders, the company was still experiencing some inefficiencies and bottlenecks that made the application process longer than it should be. For instance, many of LoanGuru’s partner lenders were still using paper applications and in-person meetings to evaluate candidates, which restricted the number of businesses that could access funding.
It was at this stage that LoanGuru contacted Unitek. They were looking for a solution that could:
- Minimise inefficiencies and bottlenecks
- Reduce reliance on outdated solutions such as paper-based documents and in-person meetings
- Decrease application processing times
- Increase the number of successful applicants without increasing operational costs or hiring more staff
- Help LoanGuru provide more financing to more SMEs in less time
Fortunately, LoanGuru had come to the right place. In the words of Martin Brown, Unitek’s founder and CEO:
‘It’s amazing to see how Unitek and the hard work of the team here will play an important role in keeping so many valuable SMEs alive and trading as lockdowns lift. Alternative lenders have been using paper and meetings to onboard customers. This is happening because automation technology has been largely inaccessible to them from a cost and IT perspective until this partnership with LoanGuru.’
The Solution: Intelligent Onboarding & Identify Verification
Unitek’s intelligent onboarding and identity verification solutions were just what LoanGuru needed. Among other things, they allow users to:
- Get new customers started automatically with quick, secure, and user-friendly self-service onboarding
- Scan photo IDs from any device and verify their authenticity without human intervention
- Process customer data more quickly and easily using the built-in Customer Identity and Access Management (CIAM) system
- Reduce the risk of fraud and stay fully compliant with Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations
- Lower operational costs by optimising the onboarding process and removing inefficiencies
The Result
After implementing Unitek’s Automation Experience Platform and the built-in intelligent onboarding and identity verification solutions, LoanGuru was able to onboard and background check loan applications automatically and without human intervention.
Customers seeking financing can now apply online, verify their identity using their smartphone or webcam, and sign up with the swipe of a finger.
The result? Our fast and simple self-service tools accelerated LoanGuru’s application process from days, weeks, and sometimes even months to just four minutes.
Once a customer submits their application online, most lenders will reply within 24 hours. If the applicant has provided all necessary documentation, it’s often possible to get an offer within a day or two — much faster than with traditional lenders such as banks.
This not only lowers operational costs and increases the number of applications that can be processed at any one time but also reduces the risk of fraud. Unitek’s technology can easily detect fake passports and other irregularities that the human eye simply can’t. The Automation Experience Platform also keeps track of the latest KYC and AML identity verification requirements to ensure that users stay compliant at all times.
Better still, the benefits for both lenders and SMEs are here to stay long after the pandemic has ended. Alva Horgan, CEO and founder of LoanGuru Business Finance, commented:
‘Unitek’s technology will allow our lenders to be fully digital. Unitek’s platform is obviously a game-changer during a pandemic, but the long-term benefits of this technology will give the lenders and their SME clients a new and easier way to operate far into the future.’
Want to Learn More?
If you are an alternative lender and curious about how automation, intelligent onboarding, and identity verification solutions could benefit your business, grab our eBook, Making the Case For No-Code Automation in Financial Services below.
Automation in Financial Services: Passing Fad or Lasting Trend?
Will it last? Find out in our definitive guide.
· Why growing your team isn't always the answer
· Areas no-code automation makes a surprising impact
· Why low-code and no-code aren't the same
