Late payments from customers are a major problem for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), with 11% of invoices paid late, equal to $1 trillion annually in unpaid invoices. This has widespread negative impacts, as 7.5% of invoices are written off as bad debt, and 11% of SMEs struggle to pay their own suppliers, invest in growth, and pay employees. The late payments create a ripple effect that damages SMEs' ability to expand and invest, and could even force some out of business if the problem persists in the long run. Fintech solutions now offer SMEs access to fair financing and the ability to receive payment immediately upon completing work.

1. The Trillion Dollar
Problem.
How late payments (and unpaid invoices) are
affecting SMEs globally.

2. According to research by Sage,
11.0% of all invoices issued by
SMEs are paid late.
This is equal to 1 Trillion USD
per year.

3. Worse still, 7.5% of invoices are
eventually written off as bad
debt.
The negative impact on
company operations is
profound...

4. Today, 11% of SMEs are struggling to:
- pay their suppliers
- invest in their business
- and pay their staff.

5. Unlike large companies, SMEs
aren’t in the position to absorb
the cost of late payments.

6. Instead, they often delay payment to
their own suppliers. Creating a
knock-on effect where their
suppliers also rely on the incoming
money to pay their own bills

7. Both of these will, in turn, have a
knock-on effect on the SMEs’ ability to
grow.
Companies that are not able to invest
will not be able to expand and take
advantage of new opportunities.

8. This type of chain reaction could
disrupt the supply chain in the short
term.
In the longer term, cash-strapped
SMEs could go out of business
altogether.

9. When clients pay late, SMEs lose
confidence.

10. So how do we get
upstream of the
problem?

11. “There comes a point where we need to
stop just pulling people out of the river.
We need to go upstream and find out
why they’re falling in.”
- Desmond Tutu

12. We urgently need to
change the culture
around payments.

13. The invoice issuer is worried that
chasing payments will damage his
customer relationships.

14. First, we must remove the stigma
around chasing payments. It
shouldn’t be seen as embarrassing
or rude to ask for money that you
are owed.

15. And secondly, larger companies
must recognise the harm late
payments cause on SMEs.
But is this just wishful thinking?

16. This doesn’t change the culture of
long payment terms - sometimes
up to 90 days - in many of our
most common industries.

17. A technological solution

18. The answer is fintech. Now SMEs
can access fair finance, quickly.

19. Fintech is creating a fairer
marketplace for SMEs.

20. One where business finance
sucks less.

21. And where you no longer have to
chase late payments, because...

22. ...you get your money the moment
you complete the work*
*so long as you and your client have signed the agreement

23. Now any SME (that sells to a
creditworthy customer) can access
finance, no matter how small they
are.

24. CreditStretcher is revolutionising
the way SMEs get access to
finance.

25. Hoping that one day,
there’ll be no more late
payment problems.

26. The immediate
payment platform.