Funding Societies, Southeast Asia’s largest small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) digital financing platform, is collaborating with Malaysia’s national car maker Proton to provide credit facilities for Proton dealers to finance the purchase of cars for floor stocking.
“Demand for personal vehicles saw an increase since the second half of 2020. Underlying this growth are concerns over shared transportation (Covid-19 health crisis) and accommodative government policies during the pandemic,
“With Funding Societies’ revolving credit facility, PROTON’s dealers can tap into that growth by increasing their inventory for sale across by increasing their floor stocking inventory of used cars,” Funding Societies Malaysia Country Head Chai Kien Poon said in a statement.
In line with Funding Societies’ mission to provide financing facilities to underserved, creditworthy SMEs, he said this revolving credit facility provides PROTON’s dealers with a more seamless experience.
“They may utilise the facility any time and anywhere upon its activation. Additionally, dealers will have access to our online supply chain financing system to manage their financing facility with us,” he added.
Funding Societies was founded in 2015 to empower SMEs in Southeast Asia by solving key pain points for small businesses in accessing financing which include the requirement for collateral, complicated and physical paperwork submission, as well as lengthy application process.
As SMEs are the backbone of the nation’s economy, Funding Societies are committed to solving the huge SME financing gap in Malaysia and the region.
“With PROTON’s sales volume increase over the past few years, we have seen an increase of trade-in or trade-up transactions,
“Through the dealer financing service provided by Funding Societies, our dealers can finance the purchase of floor stocks to enable the trade-in transaction,” said Wan Ahmad Fadzli Wan Mustafa, General Manager, Proton Edar.
Since its inception in 2019, Proton’s used car management (UCM) unit has introduced operating procedures and provided training for used car inspectors to manage transactions at each outlet and ensure services provided are in line with the expectations set by the brand.
Currently, the company has 35 outlets retailing Proton certified pre-owned (PCPO) vehicles in the country.
“Dealers who wish to apply for financing may do so via Funding Societies’ online platform. They will be able to provide financing for up to 85 percent of the transaction value with repayment periods of up to 90 days,
“With this financial facility, our dealers can grow their business by raising short-term capital to manage their cash flow and even use it for new car purchases from Proton Edar as well,” concluded Wan Ahmad Fadzli.
Vehicles sold under the PCPO programme undergo a thorough 201-point inspection and are assured to be free of any flood or major accident damage. Customers also enjoy one-year extended warranty which covers the engine and transmission as well as a one-time free basic service after six months from date of registration.
With the increasing shift to online platforms, UCM has also set up a dedicated Proton used car website to attract tech-savvy buyers.
Funding Societies | Modalku is the largest SME digital financing platform in Southeast Asia. It is registered with the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), as well as licensed in Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand, and operates in Vietnam.
The firm is backed by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, SoftBank Ventures Asia, Sequoia Capital India, Alpha JWC Ventures, SMBC Bank, Samsung Ventures, BRI Ventures, Endeavor, SGInnovate, Qualgro, and Golden Gate Ventures amongst others.
The FinTech company provides business financing to SMEs, which are funded by individual and institutional investors. In seven years, it has helped finance over 5.1 million business deals close to MYR11 billion ($2.39 billion) in funding.