Project description
The objective of Smart Cash Flow (SCF) is to empower SMEs to act on their cash flow problems. We want SCF – a platform fully embedded in a user’s online banking services – to be the advisor-of-choice for companies wanting to avoid the pitfalls of cash flow. Today, if a small company wants to begin to assess its cash flow and decide on the best way to effectively manage it longterm, it is optimal for it to have open at least four stand-alone programs: accounting software, online bank account, invoice system, debt collection system.The gap is a product enabling businesses to manage cash flow on a daily, weekly and monthly basis and obtain insight from the trends and histories without spending a fortune. This gap has not been filled by the fintech market. The tide, however, is turning. Open Banking in Europe is being promoted by the European Commission as part of a digital agenda to open up services, provide choice and competition, and allow innovation in the market. Open banking is a cornerstone of the EC’s revised Payment Service Directive (PSD2), which came into force last year. A crucial aspect of this shift is to allow 3rd party providers, like Asteria, to gain access (with the bank customer’s consent) to an account, learn from the history of transactions, and be able to provide actionable insight and recommendations. SCF is about making professional cash flow management accessible to small enterprises. It accomplishes this by linking accounting software packages to corporate banking accounts, using artificial intelligence to register patterns, develop forecasts, and streamline cash flow planning. The natural interface for our solution is the online banking account. Asteria’s product has already reached an advanced enough stage to be tested by a Swedish bank, and we have worked with three other major banks. Other business opportunities are being pursued, including in Latin America.
