Greensill, a UK-based working capital provider for businesses, has acquired Omni, a Latin America-based digital lender to SMEs, for an undisclosed amount.
The deal is expected to increase the presence of Greensill in the Latin America.
Founded in 2018 by Diego Caicedo and Andrés Abumohor, Omni provides digital working capital solutions to small and medium enterprise (SME) suppliers of large companies in Chile and Colombia.
In the last three years, Omni is claimed to have provided $300m in financial solutions to more than 5,000 clients.
With the addition of Omni’s technology platform and growing portfolio of products and clients, the Softbank-backed lender is expected to see a step-change in its capabilities in the region.
Greensill founder and CEO Lex Greensill said: “It gives me great pleasure to welcome Diego, Andres and their team to Greensill. Latin America is a highly attractive growth market for us and the acquisition of Omni will significantly expand our capabilities in this important region.
“Together we will ensure that SMEs across Latin America have the fairest access to finance available.”
Last year, Greensill provided $143bn in finance to more than 8 million customers and suppliers in over 175 countries.
The company recorded an increase of 72% in its year-on-year volumes in the first quarter of this year, as demand for finance has continued to rise.
Omni co-founder Diego Caicedo said: “We are delighted to be joining Greensill. Both of our companies were founded with similar business philosophies and ambitions, and this transaction will allow Omni to accelerate our growth plans in the Latin American market, while also benefiting from Greensill’s expertise and global capabilities.”
Global working capital finance is valued at$56.3 trillion
As per Greensill’s research, the global addressable market for working capital finance is valued at $56.3 trillion, of which Latin America accounts for nearly $750bn.
According to World Bank’s data, SMEs across Latin America account for more than 20% of the global unbanked market, indicating the difficulties faced by entrepreneurs and suppliers in the region to secure fair finance.
Greensill said that the acquisition of Omni helps to address the inequality by opening up opportunity for SMEs to access fairer finance all over Latin America.
