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FinTech firm MarketInvoice announces another regional authority funding partnership

MarketInvoice, the peer-to-peer (P2P) business lender, has announced a new partnership with West Oxfordshire District Council that will facilitate £50,000 investment in local businesses.

The online funding platform, which helps small businesses to release funds from unpaid invoices, will allow West Oxfordshire businesses to upload their invoices which will then be funded by investors that include the Council.

The £50,000 set aside will be deployed on a continuous basis, with the cash returned once invoices have been paid, a process which MarketInvoice says typically takes 45 days.

Commenting on the new agreement, Cllr Warwick Robinson, Cabinet Member for Economic Development, said that a lack of working capital has been a significant barrier for growth for local Oxfordshire firms.

He added: “This innovative scheme means they do not have to spend time and resources chasing unpaid invoices. Instead, they have cash up front to improve their liquidity and help with expansion.”

This is not the first time that London and Manchester-based MarketInvoice, which closed a £7.2m fundraise back in July, have partnered with a local authority in this way after it facilitated over £20m-worth of lending to Manchester businesses following a similar partnership with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA).

“The MarketInvoice platform is a great way for the Council to help local businesses directly where they need it and it means that our funds can be used again and again.

“I believe this will be a real advantage for local firms and will benefit the West Oxfordshire economy as a whole,” Robinson added.

Anil Stocker, Chief Executive and Co-Founder at MarketInvoice, commented: “We’re delighted to be supporting local businesses in West Oxfordshire. By deploying funds on our platform, the Council is able to invest directly into the local economy, boosting businesses and creating jobs across the District.”

Since it was founded in 2010, the Shoreditch FinTech firm has provided over £900m in funding to UK businesses and has attracted investment from the British Business Bank.

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