German Digital Banking Firm Penta Clears Gateway For Iwoca loans

Germany’s Penta, the digital platform for small and medium-sized business (SMB) banking, is partnering with the German FinTech iwoca, to help those companies get credit, Finextra reported on Tuesday (Dec. 17).

Starting immediately, Penta’s customers can directly tap iwoca’s portal and apply for credit in minutes, with the funds distributed on the same day.

At iwoca Germany, customers can get flexible terms and take out loans totaling as much as €100,000.

“We have built a platform that provides companies with all the products they need in their day-to-day business, in one place,” said Marko Wenthin, CEO of Penta. “By partnering with iwoca, our customers now have a single point of access to a credit provider that will make their day-to-day life easier and bring the important issue of liquidity management a big step forward.”

Penta developed its digital Business Banking and Expense Management solution to assist small businesses and those who are self-employed. Many people have found that financial products and services aren’t easily adapted to their individual situation or business model.

As a result, Penta and iwoca offer a range of SMB-specific financial services and help accommodate loans that might have fallen by the wayside. More than €1 billion in loans have been granted by iwoca.

“We want to provide the millions of small business owners in Germany with a service that is tailored to their needs,” said Oliver Schmid, general manager of iwoca Germany. “iwoca and Penta share the same mission.”

In February, iwoca announced a Series D funding round worth nearly $194 million led by Augmentum Fintech. Investors included NIBC Bank as well as existing backers, such as Prime Ventures.

In a statement, iwoca CEO and Co-founder Christoph Rieche said the investment will enable the company to continue focusing on propelling small business growth in the U.K., as well as in Germany and Poland. The company turned its first profit last year, reports said, and has so far provided financing to more than 25,000 small businesses.