Meet the Founding father of StonePay

When investing, your capital is in danger.

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A giant problem in B2B relationships is figuring out the reliability or trustability of latest firms you’re employed with. Will they pay invoices on time for instance? StonePay observed a spot out there to provide companies ‘fame scores’ based mostly on actual information. Consider StonePay because the Tripadvisor for companies, the place your fame issues! You’ll be able to construct your online business’ fame or consider your consumer’s fame based mostly on virtuous fee habits, validated by the supply-chain group.

We needed to know extra, so we sat down with Founder Filippo Mazzei for an interview.

To begin off are you able to inform us a bit about your self?

I’m a dynamic particular person with a robust curiosity in new companies and innovation. In 2016, I moved to the UK from Italy to check Enterprise and Administration at College of Westminster. New applied sciences have at all times me: I took half in my college’s Begin-Up Co-Creator programme contributing to the ideation and launch of the start-up ‘Comfortable Scholar’ in 2018, which is now up and working providing international college students a set of options to assist combine into London’s college life.

What did your profession appear to be earlier than StonePay?

I began work in a sports activities advertising and marketing company based mostly in London named Mughoot, the place I used to be a part of the enterprise growth crew chargeable for companion relationships. After this I had the prospect to hitch one of many main B2B marketplaces within the pure stone commerce trade. I used to be put answerable for the event of SmartFair, their on-line event-driven exhibition answer to help promoting their wares; facilitating 1000’s of firms in the course of the first pandemic wave when commerce occasions and exhibitions needed to be held remotely. Our on-line catalogues carried items valued at over US$250 million.

When and the way did you realise that there was a market being underserved? 

When engaged on SmartFair I realised that B2B by way of general enterprise transacted is way bigger than B2C; and for brand new companies it gives a neater and extra concentrated market to handle than B2C. I recognized two main enterprise dangers within the B2B buying and selling group: the shortage of corresponding occasion belief, and the extensive acceptance of late funds. 

In our SmartFair platform, the ‘purchasing cart’ was a high-value container and all transactions have been settled by time period funds; letters of credit score are not viable due to prices and delays incurred.

Transaction dangers stay all upstream, and lack of belief between buying and selling events impacts enterprise buying and selling relationships in each a part of the world.  

These dangers imply that many enterprise operators do enterprise largely with events they already know. The choice for brand new relationships is to amass info from credit score rating firms, credit score bureaus, and different monetary establishments concerning the different occasion. However this information is tough to seek out and expensive, after which it’s usually incomplete or outdated.  So I shortly got here to the realisation that this present monetary information answer was merely not sufficient to engender belief between firms which might be usually not in the identical jurisdiction and even typically on reverse sides of the world, talking a unique language.

What does StonePay do?

After we got down to construct StonePay we questioned how we may get hold of such verified enterprise info? We didn’t need to method it like one other credit score rating system, counting on exterior monetary information. We needed to start out and finish with the group to assist democratise belief. Our mission was bold, to create a brand new customary of belief that helps speed up buying and selling by facilitating establishing the phrases of commerce with a brand new companion, consumer or vendor. 

We got here up with a easy and optimistic method the place every firm can management their ‘Popularity Rating’ by virtuous fee behaviour – turning confirmed fee historical past into fame factors. This method fully revolutionises the present paradigm. StonePay captures information from the 2 events instantly concerned within the transaction, confirming one another’s efficiency, that’s it.

This fashion each firm can construct their score and belief profile, which is safe and of their management to be shared or saved non-public if they need. Your enterprise fame report might be shared to signify the corporate’s trustability, to acquire higher credit score circumstances or enterprise phrases, and usually to speed up enterprise via the promotion of better belief.

You’ll be able to name it the ‘Tripadvisor for enterprise’ or the ‘TrustPilot of B2B buying and selling’ nevertheless it’s extra precious, it’s a trust-mark licensed by a group of B2B firms. Know-how is altering finance. Assist us speed up this transformation. StonePay challenges conventional norms, optimises belief via a virtuous cycle and makes it simpler for everybody to do extra enterprise.

What does your aggressive panorama appear to be and the way does StonePay differentiate itself?

In B2B late funds are an enormous worldwide drawback, primarily addressed by three kinds of answer:

• Accounting software program platforms 
• Credit score insurance coverage firms
• Credit score rating apps 

All these present options are based mostly on monetary information that’s usually incomplete and outdated. Monetary audits cowl solely part of the issue, they aren’t dependable or out there in each relationship. Additionally right this moment’s typically accepted method relies fully on exterior management: it implies that an establishment or software program app evaluates and offers a rating. We needed to alter that, let the group take care of that. We deliver the ability again to the person and to the enterprise and buying and selling group.

How do you intend to create a scalable and worthwhile enterprise mannequin?

First, the enterprise mannequin. StonePay app will at all times and perpetually be FREE (freemium). ts fundamental function is to succeed in the utmost variety of customers worldwide and supply a personal and safe fame score that they management. We’ve got a distribution technique based mostly on viral processes inbuilt, and have numerous approaches to mitigate the frequent ‘chilly begin’ drawback. You’ll be able to learn extra on this in our pitch. Within the subsequent section we’ll launch a Premium model which is able to add extra superior options equivalent to branded profiles and notifications, branded and customised reviews and extra. Providing companies like credit score and loans, credit score insurance coverage, bill financing, collections, HR, and many others.

Second, the go-to market technique. We imagine too many start-ups depend on generic advertising and marketing methods,  promoting or social media campaigns, to extend the variety of downloads. However what follows is the true drawback: will there be lively customers that frequently check-in on the app? Is it sticky?  

What number of apps are downloaded in our telephones however by no means used? We realised that to maximise the app’s traction and utilization, StonePay must be very simple to make use of. And it has to work proper out of the field and require no change in enterprise processes and work routines.

That’s the reason considered one of our first steps after crowdfunding is to finalise two API modules for the principle accounting options (Xero, Quickbooks) in an effort to combine StonePay with no coding required.  You’ll be able to simply think about what number of invites are be generated by every firm in an invoicing cycle.  

We’ll make a collection of agreements with software program homes in an effort to add a free StonePay script of their accounting software program to let their clients earn factors whereas doing one thing they’re already doing, with no interruption and even change to their routine. One other factor of our go-to market technique might be to develop partnerships with a spread of ‘influencer’ firms. We’ll develop a branded StonePay model for them. These clusters might be one other vital supply of lively customers for us. We provide one thing very particular for such massive firms: a brand new technique to monitor and reward fee and assortment at their very own firm. StonePay can present granular evaluation on fee and invoicing exercise, and supply a brand new technique to incentivise sure fee and invoicing behaviours.

What do you intend to do with the cash you elevate? 

We have to present StonePay with extra strong parts by way of the present crew and new administration and increase the technical crew. By way of know-how, our fundamental objective is to develop the APIs for the 2 hottest accounting options, and to enhance our web-based StonePay model.

What do you like to do in your free time? 

What I like most is travelling. I’m very fortunate to be born in a beautiful nation, so each time I’ve the prospect, I am going again to Italy and take my automotive to go go to new locations. I’m a sports activities fanatic and like to play soccer and tennis. I additionally actually get pleasure from watching Method 1, and Moto GP. Lastly, since my earliest years I’ve been a present leaping fanatic and I used to be knowledgeable present jumper earlier than transferring to London, representing Italy in worldwide exhibits round Europe.

For those who weren’t constructing StonePay, what do you suppose you’d be doing?

I’m fairly positive I’d be working in a startup. After my expertise at SmartFair, I’ve developed a robust need to be a part of bold initiatives which might be nonetheless originally of their journey. Contributing at such an early stage of the method entails many obligations, however undoubtedly pays again by way of satisfaction.

What’s the most important lesson you’ve learnt thus far constructing StonePay?

All of us make errors, it’s how we take care of them that basically counts.

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Keen on investing in StonePay? Check out their marketing campaign right here.