Omnicredit ended 2024 with a loan portfolio exceeding €10 million and over 100 active clients. The primary new product that PragmaGO will introduce to the local market is Merchant Cash Advance (MCA), a fully automated digital lending solution for SMEs (read more about acquisition here).
PragmaGO, the Polish fintech specializing in financing services for SMEs, aims to rapidly expand in the Romanian market through its recent acquisition of Omnicredit. The goal is to triple its loan portfolio within the next three years. By the end of 2024, Omnicredit’s loan portfolio surpassed €10 million, with the company serving over 100 active clients.
“We have ambitious plans for the coming years, driven by the attractive growth opportunities in the Romanian SME financing segment. We aim for accelerated annual growth in the receivables portfolio, targeting double-digit increases, which should lead to a tripling within three years. We anticipate an even greater rise in the number of clients, as the introduction of integrated financing solutions will reduce the average financing value per client,” stated Vjaceslav Lypko, Head of International Expansion at PragmaGO.
PragmaGO acquired 89% of Omnicredit shares for €5.78 million, with 85% purchased from the investment fund Reconstruction Capital II Limited (RC2) and 4% from entrepreneur Elisa Rusu. The transaction includes an earn-out component of €445,000, contingent on achieving agreed performance indicators.
PragmaGO’s investment decision was influenced by several key factors: a solid management team with a customer-centric focus, a proven track record of profitable growth in the Romanian market, and in-depth expertise in credit risk management and regulatory compliance, according to Vjaceslav Lypko.
Regarding technological integration, the immediate priority is to maintain service standards for current clients. “The existing IT platform is well-developed and scalable, suitable for managing factoring and lending products. For our integrated financing products, such as Merchant Cash Advance or buy now, pay later for companies, PragmaGO will provide state-of-the-art technological solutions and the necessary operational know-how, enabling Omnicredit to offer these innovative products to SMEs in Romania. Our integrated financing solutions will be connected to systems already used by Omnicredit in areas such as credit risk data management, compliance, and loan administration. Having experience in integrating similar solutions in Poland, we do not anticipate major challenges in this process,” added Vjaceslav Lypko.
The main new product that PragmaGO will introduce to the local market is Merchant Cash Advance (MCA). “It is the most advanced digital lending solution for SMEs, fully automated, with a simple and intuitive process. In Poland, this product has been highly successful, implemented alongside top partners such as Allegro, Polskie ePlatnosci (part of the Nexi group), and Przelewy24,” said a PragmaGO representative. In 2023, PragmaGO, a 27-year-old company, provided financing of approximately €450 million, serving over 16,700 clients and processing over 384,000 invoices.
For SMEs in Romania, the new product will offer financing ranging from €1,000 to €50,000 (between 5,000 lei and 250,000 lei), with a fully automated approval process. “We will replicate the experience in Poland and introduce this product in Romania through distribution partners with strong market positions. While we cannot reveal names at this stage, they are significant Romanian providers of payment services and e-commerce platforms,” said Lypko.
“I believe in PragmaGO’s products, business philosophy, and strategic market approach. We are already in discussions with various potential partners in Romania to develop new products, and the prospects are very promising,” added Elisa Rusu, shareholder and CEO of Omnicredit.
Omnicredit founder Elisa Rusu’s experience in the company’s development over the past few years will be instrumental in the next growth phase. “We started Omnicredit in 2019, shortly before the Covid-19 pandemic, a period during which many clients ceased operations. Business predictability has been low, and recent years have seen external factors create a dynamic and vulnerable market context, necessitating agility, adaptability, and proactive engagement,” said Elisa Rusu.
The differences between the Polish and Romanian financial markets primarily stem from the Polish market being approximately five years ahead in development. “The main difference between the Polish and Romanian financial markets is that the former is about 5-6 years ahead in development, leading to differences in products, processes, adopted technologies, and consumer behavior of financial products. However, through sustained effort and with PragmaGO’s experience, we will take the necessary steps to advance and bridge these gaps,” explained Elisa Rusu.
Source: Ziarul Financial, from 03.02.2025, SME Banking Club
