Stripe, best known for its payment gateway services, has introduced new tools and financing options in the UK designed to improve businesses’ access to capital and accelerate growth.
At its annual Stripe Tour London conference, the company revealed a new capital city-based office designed to support its expansion in the UK.
As part of the announcement, businesses will be able to access financing through Stripe Capital, lower-cost Open Banking-powered payments and faster payouts.
Stripe support ingUK businesses
To coincide with the announcement, Stripe opened the doors to its new flagship London office at 201 Bishopsgate, situated between the financial center of the City of London and the technology hub around Old Street.
Stripe Cofounder John Collison commented: “The UK’s talent, infrastructure, and financial center make it an excellent place to build Stripe from, but that’s only half the story. We’re also seeing huge growth amongst UK businesses who are excited to modernise their financial systems and expand globally.”
According to the company, only half of bank loan applications by UK small businesses were successful last year, down considerably from a healthy 80% in 2018 before the pandemic, which has had lasting economical effects.
Stripe Capital promises flexible financing for SMBs by evaluating a company’s transaction and business history on the platform, with funds being delivered to approved accounts within one business day.
The company said that US Stripe Capital beneficiaries were able to grow their revenue 114% quicker than peers, with smaller companies seeing growth as high as 140% quicker.
In another nod to modern financing and efficiency, Stripe has also rolled out Open Banking-powered real-time payments, confirming plans for similar rollouts across the EU and the US later this year.
Recognizing that the UK is Stripe’s second-largest market, the finance company’s commitment to delivering more appropriate and future-ready solutions is clear as it aims to continue attracting 600 new UK businesses each day, adding to the list of existing users like Monzo, Octopus Energy, and “over half of the UK’s top AI startups.”
More from TechRadar Pro
- Stripe unbundles and opens up its payment processing tools to anyone
- Take your business online with the best ecommerce platforms
- These are the best free website builders around today
