Smith continued that with algorithms in place, "We have been able to match up with people who are able to lend based on health of business, not on FICA score." Smith did not say how it was accomplished but told listeners that it had gotten 70 percent acceptance in helping businesses acquire $45 million in financing. I'm assuming from the context that this relies on big data tools and also that Intuit has to have a way to reach lenders with the data—I would think through an online exchange—so there should be some kind of analytical element married to a data stream since isolated data from one company needs context. It should be able to provide comparative data on businesses of the same type so lenders can make sound decisions. An ability for businesses to take remedial action to improve their chances before application would be helpful (and couldn't charging for consulting recommendations be useful?) It also should produce a percentage of the amount raised if Intuit is going to make serious money. A simple fee doesn't sound that profitable to me, but who knows? Whether or not this is one of the topics at the upcoming QuickBooks Connect conference, this has potential to be a huge revenue opportunity—I'm guessing financial services are eventually a better business than commoditized software.
INTUIT BROKERING FINANCE? Featured
How it's being done is not clear. But in last month's Investor's Day, CEO Brad Smith sketched out how Intuit is helping small businesses get financing in what is clearly a test. Whether this should be called brokering or not, Intuit is using data analysis to help businesses overcome credit scores. Smith noted that six out of 10 businesses are denied loans because of their FICA scores. "We have the ability to look inside of QuickBooks and to look at invoices you have sent out and receivables you have coming and your cash flow," Smith said.
