Previse Bolsters Reverse Factoring Underwriting With Beat

Lloyd’s syndicate Beat Syndicate 4242 is collaborating with trade finance solution provider Previse to underwrite those invoices financed by third parties so suppliers can get paid more quickly, according to a Thursday (July 25) press release.

Beat Syndicate will underwrite pre-approval invoice payments for an unnamed large U.K. corporate buyer as the first step of the collaboration, the firms said. The companies will expand to broaden this tie-up globally in the coming years.

Previse operates a supply chain financing technology that collects a fee from vendors in order for them to receive payment on invoices the day they are sent. Also known as reverse factoring, the solution allows buyers to continue to lengthen their own payment terms while connecting vendors with capital more quickly.

The firm has developed its InstantPay technology to analyze dilution risk in the scenario of non-payment from a corporate in certain instances like incorrect or fraudulent invoices, or a failure on the vendor side to fulfill a contractual agreement. Collaborating with Beat Syndicate, owned by Beat Capital Partners, enhances the underwriting of this financing, the companies said, noting that businesses using Previse to pay invoices can have their transactions safeguarded by Beat.

“Unlocking value in data through artificial intelligence is becoming one of the biggest transformations in the world of insurance,” said Tom Milligan, active underwriter for Beat Syndicate 4242, in the release. “What excited us about this was the opportunity to create a brand-new market, enabling us to support the trillions of dollars of global B2B spend and help solve one of business’s most intractable problems.

“At the same time,” he continued, “the artificial intelligence developed by Previse provides us an unparalleled level of control over the risk profile of the invoices we underwrite, making it a very attractive insurance proposition.”

Previse Chief Data Scientist and Co-founder Philipp Schoenbucher said that corporates largely acknowledge how unsustainable longer B2B payment terms are.

“By working with underwriters such as Beat, we’re able to provide an added level of assurance to the institutions which fund our instant payment schemes,” he said. “Ultimately, by reducing the risks to their capital, we’re able to even further bring down the costs of instant invoice payments, widening access for the [SMB] suppliers which need this service most.”