ISCOVER
The lender has taken the next step in its evolution, marked by a stronger capital base, a broader product set, and innovative technology.
The world of commercial finance looks very different today than it did in 2008, when Capify first entered the Australian market.
Back then, businesses had few alternatives outside the major banks, processes were paper-heavy, and approvals could drag on for weeks. Technology, data, and new sources of capital have reshaped the sector – giving rise to faster, more flexible funding options.
Against this backdrop, Capify has continued to evolve, refining its offering to serve a new generation of businesses.
In the past two years, Capify has bolstered its position with a $200 million credit facility from Pollen Street Capital. This expanded facility gives Capify the firepower to support larger (business loans up to several million dollars) and more complex funding needs, a key differentiator in the market, as few alternative lenders operate at this scale.
Capify has also strengthened its leadership team through the appointments of Brett Cheal as head of sales and growth, Vlad Giliadov as head of credit risk, with Stjepan Puljic continuing as general manager for Australia, and launched a range of innovative new tools for its broker partners.
David Goldin, Capify’s founder and CEO, said these strategic moves mark a shift to ‘Capify 3.0’, a company-wide transformation designed to meet an evolving market.
He said this drives a lot of different things, “whether it’s working with broker and aggregators we’ve never worked with before, new technologies, having a really good staff that brokers can work with, as well as the right number of resources”.
“The issue we don’t have, that sometimes a lot of our peers may, is the capital to do it. It’s also the culture and the mentality of the organisation,” Goldin said.
“I’ve said this for 20 plus years around the world – putting out money is not hard at all. Collecting it back is the hard part.”
Tech-powered solutions
While part of Capify’s evolution into a more mature business comes from a stronger capital base, new technologies and products also open possibilities for brokers and their clients.
Capify’s Real-Time Offer (RTO) tool is a prime example, using proprietary tech to analyse bank statements and validate cash flow.
It also draws on business profile information from ASIC, credit bureau Equifax, and the government’s ABN Lookup, along with borrowers’ prior repayment history and Capify’s risk and pricing models built from historical portfolio performance.
By combining these inputs, the system automatically generates an indicative offer aligned with the lender’s underwriting criteria.
Cheal said RTO enables brokers to present a solution in minutes instead of hours, without impacting the client’s credit file.
“We can provide indicative offers on the spot, where a lot of other lenders are hitting the client’s credit file to do this,” he said.
“If a deal is being submitted to multiple lenders, it may have a significant impact on the applicants credit file and by the time a suitable lender is matched, it may no longer qualify.
“Our technology allows us to access the credit score and other essential data without impacting the client credit file, which is pretty powerful.”
Capify’s Rapital brand is another example of the way the lender has shifted over the years to meet market needs.
The specialist lending arm targets more complex or challenged businesses that may not fit into traditional lending boxes.
“Our Rapital product allows us to be creative for more of the challenged business where you may have multiple lending issues with the ATO, they may not be as mature or the directors may not have a very strong personal credit file,” Goldin said.
This enables Capify to move up and down the credit spectrum, offering risk-based pricing and acting as a bridge to bank finance where required.
Larger deal capability
Capify’s expanded funding facility has unlocked the ability to serve larger businesses – with loans now reaching up to $3 million.
Goldin said this is where Capify stands apart from most non-bank lenders.
“Say someone’s going for a multimillion-dollar business loan. The bank may take a month to three months to close the facility,” he explained.
“We can typically close in days for several million dollars, then refinance the customer into a bank facility with an early repayment discount once the bank financing comes through.
“Not a lot of competitors in the alternative space can operate at this level, and it’s an important evolution for us as brokers increasingly bring us larger and more complex opportunities.”
Broker proposition
Capify continues to fine-tune its offering in the transition to ‘Capify 3.0’ to meet the needs of an evolving market, and Cheal encourages brokers to stay abreast of the changes.
“If they’re not across the products and the lenders aren’t evolving to capture the market, they can’t retain their customer base and attract new customers,” he said.
“The amount of investment in people and technology that Capify has done over the past 12 months, and will continue to do into the future, empowers the broker to maintain and manage their existing customers, and attract new ones. That’s really the aim of the game.”
Capify CEO Goldin also urges brokers who haven’t worked with Capify recently to reconnect and see what the company has to offer.
“It’s a completely different company. It’s a new time. Our technology is night and day from what it used to be. Our capital is stronger than ever. Our culture is stronger than ever,” he said.
“So, whatever experience they may have had in the past, if they’re not working with Capify I would strongly recommend giving us a test, call us up, reach out and try us.
“It’s a whole new company.”
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