CHICAGO , Sept. 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Small businesses are overwhelmingly optimistic about their future growth, according to the latest Small Business Cash Flow Trend Report from OnDeck, the leading small business lending company at Enova (NYSE: ENVA) and Ocrolus, the document AI and cash flow analytics platform for lenders.

Key findings include:

• Optimism and Growth. A large majority of small businesses remain optimistic about business growth opportunities over the next 12 months.
• Payments: The use of alternative and digital payment methods continues to grow, as 60.8% of businesses reported accepting alternative payment methods, up from 54.5% in Q1. This movement indicates an increasing level of interest from customers for more flexible and convenient payment options.
• Alternative Financing: Small businesses are becoming less reliant on traditional banks for capital – nearly 75% of small businesses reported bypassing a traditional bank loan and instead sought out alternative lenders as their primary funding option.

"Small businesses remain confident in their near-term and future growth prospects as inflation cools," said Cory Kampfer, Co-President of Small Business Lending at OnDeck. "It's also very clear from our survey data that small businesses are increasingly turning to digital solutions to secure lending and facilitate payments, suggesting small business owners are becoming less reliant on traditional financial services."

"As more small businesses seek out alternative financing, real-time cash flow data is integral to enable lenders to expand their deployment of capital to a broader set of small business borrowers across industries," said David Snitkof, SVP of Growth at Ocrolus.

Key demographic findings include:

• 50% of accommodation and food services small businesses shared that they plan to hire/increase their headcount over the next six months, representing a higher percentage than any other industry represented in the survey.
• Retail-based small businesses appeared to be the most consistent in accepting alternative payments, as only 16% of retail small business respondents shared that they didn't accept alternative payments, the lowest among all industry groups.

The Q2 2024 report is based on quarterly survey responses from 413 small businesses with working capital loans from OnDeck and cash flow data from over 2.3 million small business applications, and provides deeper insights into the health of small businesses across all regions.

About OnDeck®
OnDeck®, part of Enova International, is the proven leader in transparent and responsible online lending to small businesses. Founded in 2006, the company pioneered the use of data analytics and digital technology to make real-time lending decisions and deliver capital rapidly to small businesses online. Today, OnDeck offers a wide range of term loans and lines of credit customized for the needs of small business owners. OnDeck has provided loans to customers in 900 different industries nationwide. For more information, visit www.ondeck.com.

About Enova
Enova International (NYSE: ENVA) is a leading financial services company with powerful online lending that serves small businesses and consumers who are underserved by traditional banks. Through its world-class analytics and machine learning algorithms, Enova has provided more than 10.5 million customers with over $56 billion in loans and financing. You can learn more about the company and its portfolio of businesses at www.enova.com.

About Ocrolus
Ocrolus is a document AI platform that enables faster and more accurate financial decision-making. The company analyzes documents with over 99% accuracy, regardless of format or quality, supporting over a thousand document types, including bank statements, pay stubs, and tax forms. Ocrolus provides a trusted solution to detect fraud, analyze cash flows and income, and streamline decisions for 500+ clients across a number of use cases. Customers such as Enova, PayPal, Brex, CrossCountry Mortgage, Plaid, and SoFi leverage Ocrolus automation to build delightful user experiences. To learn more, visit Ocrolus.com.

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SOURCE Enova International, Inc.