In a World of Problems, SMBs Seek Fund Transfer Bliss

An interview with Lilac Bar David, founder and CEO of FinTech Lili, on how financial institutions (FIs) and FinTechs can ensure smooth money transfers

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Small- to medium-sized business (SMB) owners are the backbone of the modern economy, contending with the same challenges as their larger counterparts without nearly as many resources. One of their top priorities is ensuring that funds move quickly and seamlessly between accounts, whether that be for B2B payments or allowing customers to instantly pay for their purchases.

“Small business owners are highly busy making sure they are getting paid for their products and services, so from their point of view, prioritizing fast payments is the number one key aspect. It’s also about making sure that they are managing the payments correctly, ensuring they know who got paid and who is still pending and so on.”

Ensuring that payments are fast and seamless is easier said than done, as many legacy payment systems are much slower than SMB owners demand. Automated clearing house (ACH) or direct deposit systems take a day or two to clear. This is a huge drawback for the lightning-fast modern economy in which customers demand instant satisfaction.

“If you’re using the traditional rails, whether it’s ACH or direct deposit, it’s not a real-time thing. So we are facing the challenges of the traditional industry dilemma: How do you get access to funds faster?”

Enabling early access to payments is crucial to counteract the inherent delays of traditional payment rails. Even if a payment is not transferred right away, Lili ensures early access to funds as well as transparency to be certain that all payments are accounted for. This two-pronged approach eliminates much of the guesswork involved in fund transfers, offering SMB owners peace of mind.

“One means is the facilitation of early access to payments, so we make sure that you get your funds faster, whether it’s real-time using Visa money transfer or up to two days early using direct deposit or ACH transfers. The number one goal is making sure that the payment is available for you as soon as we can. And second, we want to make sure that you’re updated in real time through notifications and alerts, making sure that you’re aware of any funds that have been accepted by the account.”

These measures are a stopgap until instant money movement is table stakes worldwide, however. Developing a global real-time payments system should be a top priority to ensure that SMB owners can succeed in an increasingly competitive landscape.