Liberis partners with Shop Circle to plug ecommerce SME funding gap

A new partnership between embedded finance platform Liberis and ecommerce software provider Shop Circle aims to address the ecommerce small business funding gap in the UK and US.

The partnership has initially launched in the US and UK, although Liberis and Shop Circle confirmed their intention to extend into other regions by the end of the year.

Shop Circle Capital will be powered by Liberis, offering instant and flexible funding solutions to merchants. According to a press release, the funding “flexes with the business’s future revenue”.

The Bank of England has put the UK’s SME funding gap at £22 billion, while the US Small Business Administration reported that two out of three business owners who applied for credit did not receive the funding they needed in 2022.

“With just two months from signing the agreement to launch, this partnership underscores our commitment to speed-to-market for our partners and merchants alike,” said Rob Straathof, chief executive officer of Liberis.

He added: “Our mission has always been to support small businesses by providing them with access to fair and fast funding to help close the funding gap.

“By partnering with Shop Circle, we’re excited to extend our reach and offer revenue-based financing to more ecommerce businesses.”

Luca Cartechini, co-founder of Shop Circle, said that Liberis’ understanding of the funding challenges that small businesses face “stood out”.

“Their product features, notably the speed and flexibility of their finance solutions, the fact that they seamlessly integrate into our platform, and their vision of enabling growth for ecommerce businesses perfectly align with our mission,” added Cartechini.

At the start of the year, Liberis entered the Canadian market, bringing its “four-click funding” solution to small businesses in the country, following a debt financing injection at the end of last year.

Liberis launched in Canada with its partner, business management platform for the beauty, wellness and fitness industries Vagaro.