- Intrum, a Swedish listed company, has acquired the European fintech company eCollect, marking a significant expansion in its digital service offerings.
- The management team and structure of eCollect will remain unchanged, as they plan to further expand the business across Europe.
- Marc Schillinger, founder and CEO of eCollect, envisions a shift to exclusively digital dynamic invoices and reminders in the next 3-6 years.
Intrum, a market leader in credit management services, has announced its acquisition of eCollect, a technology company specializing in digital invoicing and early collection services. This move is seen as a significant step in Intrum’s journey towards becoming a more tech-driven organization. The acquisition is in line with the industry’s trend of moving towards the earlier stages of the value chain, aiming to engage customers early in the payment process.
eCollect’s technological edge amidst a changing industry landscape
eCollect boasts an advanced receivables management platform, including a payment infrastructure developed in-house. Their primary mission is to bridge the gap in digital invoicing and reminders capabilities, ensuring business liquidity and assisting customers in settling open claims. This approach not only ensures financial fluidity but also maintains a healthy relationship with clients.
Further strengthening Intrum’s digital capabilities, eCollect will play a pivotal role in broadening Intrum’s invoicing and dunning services. By enhancing the digital and technological maturity of Intrum’s offerings, the company aims to provide its customers with more streamlined, frictionless invoicing and digital reminder services, marked by a high degree of personalization.
“As the entire industry is experiencing an upstream shift in the value chain, from collections to invoicing, we will be better positioned to address this gradual yet important movement in the market together with Intrum”, Marc Schillinger, the founder and CEO of eCollect stated in the official announcement for the acquisition.
Changes in management structure are often a particular challenge when a company gets acquired but in the case of eCollect, this isn’t a concern.
“Since we firmly trust in the new shareholder and our shared aim and vision to develop the business, management will remain with the company. Neither the management team nor its structure will change”, Marc Schillinger shared for The Recursive.
Sofia’s influence on eCollect’s growth
Sofia (Bulgaria) has been emerging as a significant tech hub in Eastern Europe and companies like eCollect are seemingly taking full advantage of the opportunities that the country provides.
“Before starting our venture on a fully bootstrapped base, we thoroughly assessed the talent acquisition countries/marketplaces and decided to locate in Sofia. We currently have around 60 employees in Sofia, mostly in tech and operations. Due to our constant need for new personnel to accommodate our company’s expansion, Sofia and its residents, as well as other staff, have significantly contributed to the success of our business”, Schillinger shared.
Future business goals
eCollect has ambitious plans for the upcoming year: “As in prior years, we will once more raise the relevant business KPIs to demonstrate the expansion and resiliency of the business. Additionally, with the new set-up, we will reach new markets and industry sectors and draw in additional corporate clients with our integrated services. The business divisions in Sofia, including the operational and technological ones, will be expanded”, Marc Schillinger commented for The Recursive.
Trends in credit management services
The landscape of the credit management services industry is undergoing a significant shift but eCollect seems to be well-prepared for the upcoming changes.
“We had a clear direction and vision when we founded and scaled the company, informed not just by our industry know-how in the field but also by numerous talks with clients and other stakeholders. We came to the conclusion that, in order to keep up with industry and economic trends, huge, global firms and corporations would increasingly outsource various stages of the receivable management value chain. This tendency is already evident in the Nordic countries, where a portion of the whole receivables management is outsourced. The trend is already spreading to many other regions of Europe”, Marc Schillinger explained for The Recursive.
Schillinger believes that in the next 3-6 years, only dynamic invoices and reminders will be delivered, allowing businesses to engage with their clients digitally: “This implies that the customer journey will be uniquely personalized to each individual consumer, which will increase consumer satisfaction and create room for up and cross-selling potential. The simplicity of paying via various payment options will also be emphasized, in addition to engagement. The same is true for the debt collection operation, where AI-supported decision-making for medium, phrasing, frequency, design, and payment options will further allow the debtor to be addressed specifically for debt repayment”, the founder of eCollect said.
Looking ahead
The acquisition of eCollect not only enhances Intrum’s portfolio with eCollect’s service offerings but also brings in an extensive and well-established client base. Intrum plans to leverage this new clientele, creating synergies with its existing customer base to further strengthen its market position. eCollect will continue to operate as a separate brand within the Intrum organization and its client bases will be managed following previous practices.
