Loans are issued for up to 24 months. Sellers can apply for a loan directly on the Ozon.Invest platform without visiting the bank's website. There is no commission for the issuance and maintenance of the loan. The bank makes a lending decision without visiting the place of business and, based on the results, informs the seller through his personal account on Ozon.
Vahe Ovasapyan, Vice President of Digital Finance at Ozon, commented:
“Three months after the launch of B2B lending on the Ozon.Invest platform, we are seeing just how timely this product was. Many entrepreneurs discovered the online sales channel during the pandemic, appreciated its advantages, and are now investing in the development of this part of their business. Statistics show that after receiving a loan from Ozon.Invest, the seller's turnover on the platform grows by about 30%. Unsecured lending from MTS Bank will help to provide financing even for new sellers who do not yet have large inventories and who can invest into scaling their sales.”
Valery Talalaev, Head of the Small Business Cluster at MTS Bank, said:
“We are starting a large-scale partnership with one of the largest online retailers by launching our lending offer for Ozon sellers. This will allow them to quickly receive funding that can be used to replenish their inventory and expand their product offering. At the same time, during the application assessment, the bank considers the borrower's business as a whole, and not only what it has achieved in terms of its cooperation with Ozon. This approach will allow sellers to obtain additional financing even if they have only recently partnered with the marketplace. I am confident that our offer is particularly relevant today, when businesses are actively reorienting themselves towards online sales and preparing for the New Year's sales season.”
After sellers agree to the terms of the loan and sign the agreement, the funds are transferred to the seller’s current account with MTS Bank. Ozon sellers can open an account using a free online service.
The Ozon.Invest fintech platform launched its B2B lending service in July 2020. The platform’s first financial partners were SimpleFinance and Papa Finance. The first major bank joined the project in September 2020. The current average loan size on the platform is RUB 1.5 million.
About MTS Bank
Public Joint Stock Company MTS-Bank (PJSC MTS-Bank) is a universal commercial bank and one of the 50 leading Russian banks. MTS Bank’s network of service offices covers more than 50 cities in the 30 largest regions of Russia. The main shareholder is Mobile TeleSystems BV Private Limited Liability Company, a subsidiary of PJSC Mobile TeleSystems.