Industry: Agriculture
Product: IDeal™
Facility size: €2,000,000
When an independent farm was acquired by new proprietors, it secured an invoice discounting facility. The business faced cash flow problems having suffered some financial challenges under previous ownership; it needed an immediate cash injection to continue to trade.
Close Brothers analysed the firms balance sheet and forward-looking business strategy, and saw that although the firm has experienced some losses, it remained profitable overall and had a healthy potential. The new owners had invested heavily in the farm and all bank debt had been cleared, with a plan in place which would mean invoice discounting would be the business’ sole funding route going forward.
Invoice discounting allowed the business to manage cash flow more effectively. As soon as an invoice is raised, this facility gives immediate access to up to 90% of the cash owed. Then, payments are collected from the customer as usual, so the facility remains entirely confidential.
The farm chose to use Close Brother’s market-leading online platform, IDeal™. As the funding needed to supplement the owners’ investment, this technology was the perfect fit. It provides a real-time view of availability and access to cash from unpaid customer invoices 24/7, from anywhere in the world.