SSV Capital is a small company with big ambitions as it looks to shake up the payment services and property investment sectors – in both cases using disruptive technologies to enable those objectives.
Two significant milestone have been achieved in recent weeks: A listing on the JP Jenkins share dealing platform, followed by a well-backed £1 million fundraiser.
As we will see, this is just the start of the journey.
Founder Ankur Ghosh set the business up in 2020, and has done so in his own image with a focus on sustainability, or as Ghosh himself puts it: ‘Preach what you pray’.
So, the ‘core’ of the business model is its focus on the ‘three Ps’ of people, planet and prosperity.
Founder Ankur Ghosh set the business, which is located in Canary Wharf (pictured) up in 2020
SSV Capital is not a monolithic entity; it operates across three distinct verticals: SSV SmartPay (banking and fintech), SSV Real Estate (prop-tech), and SSV Funds (primarily focusing on the sustainable fintech and prop-tech sectors).
The immediate priorities, as mentioned, are in the fintech and ‘prop-tech’ sectors.
SSV Real Estate is an investment platform that aims to democratise the way people invest in high-yielding commercial property, offering a range of tools designed to diversify an investor’s portfolio, reduce associated risks, and potentially increase earning potential.
However, the innovation that is closer to a soft market launch is SSV SmartPay. This is a technology that could potentially revolutionise the point-of-sale and online payments.
According to data from Lloyds Bank, almost 90% of the UK population now employs contactless payments for everyday transactions.
However, what is less known is the merchant service charge, a fee that can range from 0.75% to 3% or more of the transaction size.
‘We’re pioneering disruptive technology that leverages Open Banking to sidestep the traditional APIs of Visa and MasterCard,’ says Ghosh.
‘After years of research and development, we’ve encrypted a payment solution that operates on an Open Banking framework.’
For smaller businesses, transaction fees can be the difference between financial viability and struggle, especially in an era marked by inflation.
Ghosh reveals that SmartPay’s use of QR codes will reduce these charges by up to 70% (and also bleeds into sustainability as it reduces the need for electronic equipment).
The strategy for scaling SmartPay is both intricate and ambitious. The initial plan is to forge partnerships with existing payment solution providers, thereby serving as a conduit for business development.
This approach allows SmartPay to gain a foothold in a broad array of merchant categories without the necessity of a large, dedicated sales force.
Ghosh outlines the plan to scale up initially to between 6,000 and 8,000 merchants, targeting a 1% share of the UK market.
The longer-term vision is far more ambitious: capturing 5% ‘and beyond’ of the market, which would roughly equate to over 50,000 merchants with an expected revenue growth of ’45 times by year five’ on a full commercial launch.
And there are wider applications for the tech, beyond point-of-sale.
‘We are not only a payment process provider; we are also aiming at potential cross-border payment with a virtual account and wallet services giving the user a unique experience on a one-stop platform,’ Ghosh explains.
And, in time, SmartPay may provide a quick, easy, accessible and financially equitable way of paying tax bills or for government services online.
Of course, the company takes pride in its robust security measures, believing that its QR code payment system avoids some of the pitfalls that plague existing point-of-sale systems.
Ghosh describes SmartPay as the near-term ‘golden goose’. However, he is not one to rest on his laurels.
With SSV Real Estate prop-tech platform also in the pipeline, Ghosh believes he will soon have two propositions to offer to investors.
With commercial and operational milestones coming thick and fast it will be fascinating to see just how the next 12 months plays out for the SSV CEO and his team.
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