" class="no-js "lang="en-US"> UK credit checking startup Ormsby Street launches in Italy - Fintech Finance
Thursday, March 28, 2024

UK credit checking startup Ormsby Street launches in Italy

Fintech startup Ormsby Street has launched its innovative credit-checking tool CreditHQ in Italy, as part of a new partnership with one of Italy’s biggest and most-used banks.

CreditHQ allows a small business to check the financial health and credit status of any customer or partner. The Italian launch of CreditHQ is the first part of an ambitious international expansion programme that will look to target the US, Australia and other European markets over the next 12 months. Ormsby Street was recently a shortlisted finalist for ‘Next Breakthrough Exporter of the Year’ in the HP Go Global Awards, that recognise the most promising strategy for exports.

Italy was selected as the first international market for Ormsby Street because it has the highest proportion of micro and small companies in Europe. There are more than 4M businesses employing fewer than 10 workers each, so the opportunity for CreditHQ is vast.

“Late invoice payment is as big an issue for small businesses all over the world as it is for those in the UK, impacting on cash-flow and the ability to grow,” said Martin Campbell, MD, Ormsby Street. “There is a growing need in Italy for an easy way of checking the credit status and payment performance of customers and CreditHQ meets that requirement head-on. Partnering with one of Italy’s leading banks is a great way of bringing CreditHQ to the Italian market and we are confident it will mirror our success in the UK.”

CreditHQ is working with Rome-based credit supplier, Cerved Group, and will allow small businesses to check the credit status, payment performance and general financial health of millions of Italian companies. There is a simple traffic light ratings system that shows clearly the level of risk associated with the company in question, and users are given two different ratings, one addressing credit risk and the other payment performance.

Following on from the Italian launch of CreditHQ, Ormsby Street will be further showcasing its international expansion plans at the prestigious FinovateFall 2015 event in New York on 16 / 17 September. Ormsby Street’s Martin Campbell will be presenting to a global ‘who’s who’ of banking and financial technology and outlining his vision for CreditHQ in the US.

Ormsby Street has also been selected as one of the European finalists in the BBVA Open Talent 2015 Competition. This year is the seventh edition of the international contest that identifies and supports the most innovative fintech startups. Ormsby Street will compete against other fintech startups in the finals taking place in Barcelona on 21 / 22 September.

“Late payment is a blight on small businesses all over the world and the next 12 months will see us launch in at least another four countries,” continued Martin Campbell. “It is impossible to force someone to pay on time, so small businesses have to protect themselves against late payment as best they can. CreditHQ’s use of big data to address that problem gives small businesses the insight and power to do just that, and is suited to almost any territory in the world.”

Ormsby Street is one of the UK’s most promising fintech startups. CreditHQ is used by more than 25,000 UK small businesses, and earlier in 2015 Ormsby Street was chosen to be part of the SXSW event in the US, where it was representing UKTI as part of the UK EXPO stand.

  1. Mastercard and Singapore Airlines Partner to Elevate Travel Experiences for Cardholders Across Southeast Asia Read more
  2. NatWest Partners With Tesco to Help Farmers Reduce Costs and Decarbonise Read more
  3. Digital ID Will Better Protect Australians from Cybercrime and Scammers Read more
  4. Mastercard Ups the Ante on Ecommerce Security; Scales Its Tokenized Online Checkout Experience to Tackle Online Payment Fraud in Australia Read more
  5. Equifax and Homely Partner to Power Platform for Aspiring Homeowners Read more