ING has announced a strategic partnership with FinTech outfit Kabbage, a technology and data platform powering automated lending to SMEs. This follows the FI taking an equity stake in the US-based company as part of a financing round in which Kabbage raised $135 million. As part of the partnership, ING and Kabbage will start a pilot in Spain, offering SMEs loans up to Euro 100,000. "This partnership shows we are dedicated to creating a differentiating customer experience. After a successful launch, we will look into expanding the offering. This initiative perfectly fits our strategic priority to increase the pace of innovation," says Ralph Hamers, CEO at ING. "The cooperation is also in line with ING's innovation approach to launch new services via both own initiatives and by working together with and investing in FinTechs and startups." "As financial institutions embrace new lending technology, we see that platforms like Kabbage are interesting for them to provide a superior experience to their customers," comments Rob Frohwein, Kabbage co-founder and CEO. "We are incredibly proud of our partnership with ING, and most importantly, we are thrilled to serve the small and medium businesses powering the economy in Spain."
Yesterday ING announced a new strategic partnership with online lending platform Kabbage, which further highlights the origination role that new fintech companies can perform for larger institutions. The announcement comes as ING is looking to expand its presence in the financial services sector by leveraging blockchain technology and artificial intelligence. Kabbage are able to offer automated lending to SME customers via their technology and data platform.