North Mill Announces $404 Million Term Securitization
September 3, 2024SEPTEMBER 3, 2024, NORWALK, CT – North Mill Equipment Finance LLC (“NMEF”), a leading independent commercial equipment lender located in Norwalk, Connecticut, announced the closing of its eighth asset backed securitization (ABS), NMEF Funding 2024-A (“NMEF 2024-A”). The $404 million transaction is NMEF’s first ABS transaction this year, bringing the total ABS proceeds raised by NMEF since inception to $2.3 billion. NMEF 2024-A features a strong, diversified collateral pool resulting from NMEF’s recent adjustments to its pricing and risk framework.
“The interest in the NMEF shelf continues to grow. We received 45 orders from 32 unique investors, including 12 first time buyers, that drove demand to a ~3.5x oversubscribed level and allowed for continued tightening of spreads from launch to pricing,” said NMEF’s President and Chief Operating Officer, Mark Bonanno.
Mitch Tobak, NMEF’s VP of Corporate Development added, “NMEF was proud to present a strong collateral pool to investors, with a balanced mix that no longer contains long-haul trucking within the top five equipment types, along with the highest weighted average FICO of any NMEF issuance to date. Transportation collateral represents less than a third of the total pool, a testament to NMEF’s ability to originate profitable paper in a variety of industries. We are grateful for the continued support of our referral partner network and the ~14K active borrowers they have referred to NMEF.”
About NMEF
NMEF originates and services small to mid-ticket equipment leases and loans, ranging from $15,000 to $2,500,000 in value. A broker-centric private lender, the company accepts A – C credit qualities and finances transactions for many asset categories including construction, transportation, vocational, medical, manufacturing, printing, franchise, renovation, janitorial and material handling equipment. NMEF is majority owned by an affiliate of InterVest Capital Partners. The company’s headquarters are in Norwalk, CT, with regional offices in Irvine, CA, and Voorhees NJ. For more information, visit www.nmef.com. One of NMEF’s controlled affiliates, BriteCap Financial LLC, is a leading non-bank lender providing small businesses with fast, convenient financing alternatives such as working capital loans since 2003 from offices in North Hollywood, CA and Las Vegas, NV. For more information, visit www.britecap.com.
Whoa, QuickBooks Capital Shoots Up in Business Loan Originations
August 22, 2024Intuit’s fiscal year ending July 31, 2024 revealed a stunning detail, $2.4B in financing through QuickBooks Capital over 12 months. This was up 28% from the prior year. That number likely puts Intuit’s business loan volume ahead of Shopify’s but that’s still less than Enova and Square. Customers of QuickBooks Capital can apply for financing by clicking a button right in their QuickBooks software.
QuickBooks Online accounting revenue grew 17% in Q4 and 19% in fiscal 2024, the company reported. Intuit has the advantage of many related QuickBooks services slowly merging into one such as payments, payroll, capital, and Mailchimp. Intuit also owns Credit Karma.
Shopify Capital’s Funding Business Grows in Q2
August 14, 2024Shopify Capital originated ~$700M in business loans and merchant cash advances in Q2. During the earnings call, Shopify CFO Jeff Hoffmeister referred to its Capital division as a “growth business” that had increased in volume. Shopify has otherwise seemed to downplay mention of this division since early last year. In terms of origination volume, the company is still not as big as Enova or Square Loans.
Shopify’s rival, Amazon, used to offer funding to its clients directly as well, but switched to referring its clients to third party lenders earlier this year.
North Mill Sets New Monthly Origination Records in July
August 5, 2024August 5, 2024, NORWALK, CT – North Mill Equipment Finance LLC (“NMEF”), a leading independent commercial equipment lessor headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, announced today that the company had a record-breaking month in July as funded volume surged to more than $56 million, an increase in loan and lease originations of 33% from the same period last year.
“We are firing on all cylinders and well poised to continue our growth trajectory,” said David C. Lee, Chairman and CEO, North Mill. “We have a strong capital base, a loyal and ever-expanding group of referral partners who consider NMEF their primary lender, and a diversified portfolio that helps us mitigate the economic woes that plague specific industries like the trucking sector.”
According to Lee, NMEF has been steadily rebalancing its book of business, providing its referral partners with more opportunities to finance a variety of equipment. “Historically, trucking related collateral, both local and long-haul, represented an average of 40% of our originations whereas today it embodies just 15% of what we finance,” he said. “Medical, franchise, and construction collectively now represent almost 60% of our funding volume.” In another pivotal move to diversify, NMEF has grown its vendor program in partnership with referral partners, including banks, captives and other funding sources. In addition to the high watermark in originations, the company’s weighted average FICO reached 735, weighted average yields are north of 13%, and submission approval rates are approaching 60%.
While many equipment lenders have reduced or even ceased funding operations over the past year, NMEF has been selectively adding to its team. Joining the company as an Assistant Vice President, Relationship Manager, is Mary E. Armstrong, CLFP who brings over twenty years of referral partner relationships while holding similar roles at Financial Pacific, Marlin, and Canon. “We are very excited to welcome Mary to the NMEF family of companies,” said Paul Cheslock, VP of Customer Relations, NMEF. “Her reputation is stellar. Brokers, customers, and colleagues alike have commented on her talent, innate sales ability, and professionalism.” Ms. Armstrong reported “making the decision to join NMEF was not difficult. For quite some time, I’ve been aware of NMEF’s reputation as a progressive leader and trailblazer.”
Also joining NMEF is Zacchary Lee, Sr. Analyst, Corporate Development, who will assist the finance team with budgeting, portfolio analytics, and the execution of strategic initiatives. An honors graduate of The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, Mr. Lee brings 5 years of experience in financial services.
About North Mill Equipment Finance
NMEF originates and services small to mid-ticket equipment leases and loans, ranging from $15,000 to $2,500,000 in value. A broker-centric private lender, the company accepts A – C credit qualities and finances transactions for many asset categories including construction, transportation, vocational, medical, manufacturing, technology, franchise, renovation, janitorial and material handling equipment. NMEF is majority owned by an affiliate of InterVest Capital Partners. The company’s headquarters are in Norwalk, CT, with regional offices in Irvine, CA, and Voorhees NJ. For more information, visit www.nmef.com. One of NMEF’s controlled affiliates, BriteCap Financial LLC, is a leading non-bank lender providing small businesses with fast, convenient financing alternatives such as working capital loans since 2003 from its main office in Las Vegas, NV. For more information, visit www.britecap.com.
PayPal Business Loan/Working Capital Volume Down By Half Since Pullback
July 30, 2024
PayPal’s small business financing volume has been roughly reduced by half since the company officially announced a pullback in 2023.
For example, consider that PayPal purchased only $774M in merchant receivables through the first half of 2024 vs $1.4B purchased in the first half of 2022. Though these numbers are not originations per se they are proxy indicators that show just how much has changed.
Of the $774M purchased in the first half of 2024, only $355M of it was from the 2nd quarter. Meanwhile, one of its competitors originated $918M in the same quarter.
Back in early 2022, PayPal announced that it was then one of the top five lenders to small businesses in the United States. It claimed to be doing $4B a year in originations in 2019, at that time making it arguably the largest online business lender in the country. Today the leading online small business lenders are Block (Square Loans) and Enova (OnDeck & Headway Capital).
Dragin Technologies and Ocrolus Announce Strategic Partnership: Enabling the Next Generation of Application Process Automation for Small Business Financing
May 20, 2024
New York, NY – 05/20/24 – Dragin.io, a machine learning process automation tech firm, is thrilled to announce a product integration and strategic partnership with Ocrolus, a leader in AI-driven financial document analysis. This collaboration aims to combine Dragin’s cutting-edge process automation technology with the industry-leading bank statement automation and cash flow analytics products offered by Ocrolus. Together, the new solution offers clients in small business financing unmatched speed, accuracy, compliance, and a robust fraud detection system, providing them with confidence and security in their financial operations.
Mark Ross, CEO of Dragin, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership: “This is incredibly exciting for the future of the small business financing industry. Dragin specializes in automation solutions that help our clients deliver their offers faster than anyone else in the industry. Partnering with Ocrolus enables us to achieve technological advancements in business financing sooner than expected.”
Dragin’s AI and machine learning (ML) algorithms enable sophisticated data processing, providing actionable insights for offer creation and customization in the business funding deal cycle. This technology empowers underwriters to make informed decisions smarter and more quickly.
This partnership will enable powerful solutions for providers of small business financing, offering:
- Speed and Efficiency: Clients can rapidly analyze bank statement data, accelerating decision-making and reducing the time required for underwriting approvals.
- Compliance and Fraud Detection: Ocrolus’ technology performs comprehensive, AI-driven fraud detection, safeguarding clients against potential risks.
- Accuracy and Reliability: The partnership guarantees high levels of accuracy in data extraction and analysis, minimizing errors and enhancing the reliability of financial assessments.
- A.I. & Machine Learning: Dragin has developed advanced AI and ML models that can parse and classify nearly all document types and fill in missing fields such as industry, leading to a more robust auto-decline system. Integrating Ocrolus’ AI-driven document automation and analytics will bolster Dragin’s overall capabilities in lead prequalification.
“We are incredibly optimistic about this partnership with Dragin,” remarked Sam Bobley, CEO of Ocrolus. “Their focus on improving the efficiency of small business funding processes and commitment to client satisfaction makes them an ideal partner for Ocrolus. We look forward to a successful collaboration that will provide customers with the trusted and accurate data, fraud detection, and analytics they need to confidently make important financial decisions.”
About Dragin
Dragin is a leading fintech solutions provider dedicated to delivering innovative and efficient services to its clients. Founded with a mission to simplify and streamline financial processes, Dragin has developed cutting-edge technology, including A.I. and machine learning, to streamline processing automation which creates actionable insights for offer creation and customization. For more information about Dragin and its automation solutions, please visit https://www.dragin.io
About Ocrolus
Ocrolus is a document AI platform that enables faster and more accurate financial decision-making. The company analyzes documents with over 99% accuracy, regardless of format or quality, supporting hundreds of document types including bank statements, pay stubs, and tax forms. Ocrolus provides a trusted solution to detect fraud, analyze cash flows and income, and streamline decisions for 500+ clients across a number of use cases. Customers such as Enova, PayPal, Rapid Finance, Bluevine, National Funding, and Kapitus leverage Ocrolus automation to build delightful user experiences. To learn more, visit Ocrolus.com.
FOR SALE: Funding Circle US?
March 8, 2024
Funding Circle has decided to focus just on its UK business. The company is open to selling off its US business, it revealed.
“Whilst the US business offers attractive long term growth, it also requires a significant amount of cash and capital to grow the SBA proposition and we don’t believe that this is the best course of action for the Group,” said Funding Circle CEO Lisa Jacobs. “We have received indications of interest for the US business and will update further in due course.”
The US segment originated $491M in 2023 while generating $40.4M in revenue and a $29M net loss. That loss was steeper than the $11.6M recorded in 2022.
Funding Circle had just recently secured an SBLC license after years of lobbying for the SBA to end the 40-year pause. When that happened, it was anticipated to be a big boon for them.
Compared to the competition in 2023, Funding Circle’s American origination volume was only 1/6th that of Enova’s.
Intuit Experiences Big Business Loan Surge
February 26, 2024Intuit experienced a significant surge in small business lending activity, according to the company’s most recent earnings report, originating $469M in FY Q2 2024 (which ended Jan 31, 2024) which was up from $279M in FY Q1 2024. That’s a jump of nearly 70%! Intuit makes these loans via Quickbooks Capital through a partnership with WebBank. The increase warranted no mention during the earnings call.
The positive sentiment echoes that of its rivals, including Square Loans and Enova who both just reported their biggest quarters ever for originations.
