Pennylane and Defacto Strengthen Alliance to Facilitate Instant Payments for SMEs

Pennylane, certified PDP (Partner Dematerialization Platform) last September, is strengthening its partnership with Defacto, an innovative player in B2 financing. The two players offer Pennylane customers the very first financing solution integrated directly into their electronic invoicing tool.

Thanks to this innovation, SMEs can collect their invoices almost instantly after they are issued, thus simplifying their cash flow management, while allowing them to meet their new legal obligations.

Trade receivables financing, which can be defined as the “refinancing of a company’s trade receivables by a financial institution,” is an essential need for SMEs faced with payment delays. This is especially true since in France, 85% of companies report payment delays that exceed the due date. In addition to the cash flow requirement generated by payment delays, late payments mobilize 15 billion euros of cash per year for SMEs.

Until now, financing solutions were complex with numerous documents to provide and time-consuming, often requiring several weeks to release the funds. Pennylane and Defacto simplify and accelerate SMEs’ access to short-term financing, thanks to an innovative instant financing solution. This responds to a critical issue for companies, which wish to improve their cash position or seize new business opportunities.

Pennylane also offers a seamless and integrated user experience

By the end of the week, Pennylane will offer, in addition to the cash advance it already allows, a fully integrated solution, allowing SMEs to finance their sales invoices directly in their daily tool. It thus makes short-term financing directly accessible in the invoice editing flow.

This speed and simplicity constitute a major advance compared to existing solutions. In 2024 alone, Defacto financed more than 30 million euros for Pennylane customers with a Pro Account.

Arthur Waller, CEO and co-founder of Pennylane: “We make life easier for business leaders and accountants. Pennylane becomes a true source of financial truth, allowing not only optimal management of the activity, but also access to suitable financial services.”

Anticipating regulatory obligations with a major innovation

By 2025, companies will be required to adopt electronic invoicing, as well as to equip themselves with a PDP within 1 year. Pennylane and Defacto are now transforming these constraints into an opportunity. Its financial management platform obtained PDP certification in September 2024, thus guaranteeing a smooth transition to electronic invoicing, while meeting the needs of companies in terms of cash management.

With the rise of open banking and the integration of financial services within PDPs, this joint Pennylane-Defacto solution plays a key role in democratizing access to financing.

Jordane Giuly, CEO and co-founder of Defacto: “The deployment of electronic invoicing, combined with innovation in WCR financing, is a unique opportunity to meet the financing needs of SMEs. In 2024, we financed more than €30 million of WCR for Pennylane customers. This new service will increase our capacity to support SMEs directly from their PDP.”

Supporting the French economic fabric

In France, a company closes every 38 minutes due to late payments. And, each day of delay represents a 40% increase in the risk of failure for suppliers. Finally, 21% of SME/VSE managers encounter difficulties in accessing short-term financing.

The Pennylane-Defacto solution is therefore positioned as a bulwark against this economic reality. By streamlining cash flow management and reducing the time it takes to access financing, this partnership offers SMEs a way to remain competitive and resilient.

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