Customer: Capitalise

How Capitalise simplifies business funding for UK SMEs

Capitalise is a financial platform helping UK SMEs understand and control their business finance by providing business credit scores insights and simplifying access to funding. By embedding Plaid’s open banking technology into their Instant Offers framework, Capitalise provides over 150,000 SMEs with faster access to funding, removing traditional barriers and delays.

Accelerating funding decisions for SMEs

In a challenging and fast-paced economic landscape, timely access to capital can be the difference between growth and stagnation for businesses. Capitalise’s integration of Plaid enhances its already robust lending marketplace, connecting SMEs to over 100 lenders, including 10 open finance lenders. 

With Plaid’s secure bank connectivity, Capitalise launched Instant Offers to provide SMEs with pre-approved funding offers. This eliminates the need for manual bank statement uploads — a time-consuming and error-prone process. This means businesses can secure funds in minutes, rather than weeks.

By leveraging real-time financial data access from Plaid, Capitalise can make faster credit decisions, reduce administrative burdens for lenders, and increase funding approval rates. Plaid’s data-driven capabilities help streamline credit decisioning, allowing Capitalise to share applicant insights to lenders who can then evaluate applications with greater accuracy and confidence. This benefits SMEs by increasing their chances of approval and offering personalised funding options tailored to their financial profiles.

“Cash flow is one of the biggest challenges for UK businesses. By integrating Plaid’s technology, Capitalise is making financing faster, simpler, and more accessible for SMEs, ensuring they have the resources they need to thrive,” Zak Lambert, Europe Product Lead at Plaid.


Meeting the needs of SMEs in a competitive landscape

The UK lending market has undergone significant transformation, with challenger banks and alternative lenders now accounting for over 60% of SME lending. While this has created more options for businesses, it has also made it harder for owners to navigate and select the right funding provider.

Open banking bridges this gap by giving SMEs access to real-time financial data that speeds up the application process while helping lenders make more informed decisions.

“Plaid’s technology is a natural fit for enhancing our Instant Offers framework, ensuring our customers benefit from quicker, easier funding journeys.” Ollie Maitland, Co-Founder at Capitalise. 


Key Benefits for SMEs

The integration of Plaid’s into Capitalise’s platform delivers several standout advantages for small businesses:

• Simplified Application Processes: Businesses can connect securely to their bank accounts and access funding offers without the hassle of uploading documents.

• Faster Approvals: Real-time access to financial data reduces the time needed for loan approvals, enabling businesses to secure funds in minutes.

• Cost Savings: By improving underwriting and offering personalised rates, SMEs can potentially lower borrowing costs.

• Plaid’s collaboration with Capitalise underscores its commitment to driving innovation in the SME sector and empowering businesses with the tools they need to succeed.

For SMEs, the future is clear: faster, smarter funding solutions are here to stay, thanks to innovative Capitalise.

Want to learn more about how Plaid’s open banking capabilities can enhance your customer experience? Get in touch today.