It is common for companies to receive payments with deferred checks, and the need for cash often leads them to discount them at unfavorable rates. The venture MiCheque (micheque.uy) is a platform that seeks to be an alternative in this situation for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The idea is that the entrepreneur puts his check on sale and in a few hours receives the money in cash.
In March 2017, this venture began operating with the support of seed capital from the National Development Agency (ANDE), C Sinergia and the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship of ORT. MiCheque is a nexus between two needs; it unites companies that want to discount checks profitably, with investors who have financial liquidity and want to make money quickly.
Para Milton Rodríguez, uno de los co-fundadores de MiCheque, los beneficios de usar sus servicios son claros: «Juntamos a esa persona que tiene la necesidad del efectivo, que va a terminar descontando carísimo, con la que tiene necesidad de colocar dinero de forma rápida y rentable. Hacemos que esas dos puntas se unan, y se logra un buen resultado para los dos».
Para las empresas usuarias que descuenten cheques el servicio es gratuito. MiCheque si recibe dinero de parte de los inversores. El modelo de negocios de este emprendimiento siempre apuntó a ayudar a las pymes, por eso es que sobre las ganancias que el inversor recibe cobran sus servicios. El inversor solamente tiene que elegir el cheque que quiere comprar vía web y hacer luego un giro bancario. «Le conseguimos al inversor una buena opción, y por eso servicio, por ese valor agregado, le cobramos un 24% sobre la ganancia», explica Rodríguez.
So far there have been more investors who want to compare, than companies that place their checks for sale. The entrepreneurs who are in charge of the project explain that this is because the profits that investors reach are large. There are checks that last only 10 minutes published: a few minutes after they are offered, the sale is already made.
«Ahora queremos llegar más a las pymes, que nos conozcan, que sepan que somos una opción rentable. Pero lo que pasa es que el que está en un pequeño emprendimiento está enfocado en sacarlo adelante, y muchas veces no tiene tiempo de conocer más opciones», reconoció Milton Rodríguez.
Variable amounts
With no requirements, more than check data, SMEs can access the discount. MiCheque proposes that in less than 48 hours the discounter receives his money, thanks to the automation of the platform.
MiCheque «invierte las relaciones de poder», ya que el descontante pone el monto que quiere recibir por su cheque, y el inversor tiene que comprar aceptando esa propuesta.
No hay mínimos ni máximos para colocar un cheque a la venta. Los que se venden más rápido son los que están a tasas similares a la de los bancos. «Un banco te cobra una tasa de 1,5% por mes, pero es muy difícil para una pequeña empresa acceder a los requerimientos de los bancos», comentó Rodríguez.
The entrepreneur understands that the bureaucracy in which you enter to be able to discount a check through a bank, often makes SMEs resort to lenders that charge very high rates, usually 7% monthly interest rate.
The partners of MiCheque consider that the business is rounded also for the investor, who can make an investment with very little money, and in a few weeks he recovers it.
Los montos de los cheques son variables, Rodríguez cuenta que muchos inversores deciden comprar varios cheques de bajo montos: «por un cheque de $?20 .000 el inversor puede pagar unos $?19.300». Señala que si se lo piensa en números netos parece muy poco dinero -serían con este ejemplo unos $?700 – pero en realidad la tasa de ganancia es elevada.
Checks arrive in both dollars and pesos. It is usual that $?20,000, $?30,000 or $?50,000 are offered; but there are also cases of higher amounts. A few days ago a check was sold for US$?37,000, and some time ago another one for US$?60,000 dollars.
How does it work?
Both those who want to discount their checks and investors must register on the site micheque.uy. The system asks for name, email, cell phone, and identity card; and in case of being a discounter, the account number to receive the payment. Once the user contacts MiCheque, and gives the details of their check, the platform verifies the data and performs an analysis, to ensure that the check is cashed. However, the platform does not give 100% guarantee that it will be cashed. After that, the offer is published on the web, and from that moment on, investors are able to buy. When the purchase is completed and the investor makes the deposit, MiCheque gets the physical check and delivers it to the investor.
Source: The Observer
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