ipagoo’s unique pan-European online platform puts businesses in complete control of their cash management facilities. It enables instant cross-border transactions, unrivalled cash management features and benefits along with the freedom to operate multiple accounts in multiple currencies to suit different markets. SMEs can expect significant savings in fees and time by comparison to operating a traditional bank current account.

Orwell Group CEO Carlos Sanchez explains, “Why bank with a traditional bank when you can have so much more flexibility and control with ipagoo? We want to liberate people from traditional banks and provide them with the freedom to choose products and services that suit them. ipagoo represents a new generation of banking products and services aimed at meeting the needs of truly international customers. Traditional banks have proven themselves unwilling and unable to provide the convenience and choice that modern, international SMEs require. We’re offering a genuine breakthrough in financial services, putting SMEs in control of their cash management and freeing them from the time and complexity involved in trying to make traditional banking products fit the demands of their customers and suppliers particularly when these are based overseas. We want to provide a genuinely positive experience of banking for our customers”

Benefits of ipagoo:
• Online application process that removes the high levels of bureaucracy often associated with opening a bank account particularly in a foreign country.
• ipagoo accounts can be accessed immediately online and via an app for iOS and Android smartphones / tablets which will be launched in March.
• ipagoo offers instant cash management and real time money transfers. SMEs can benefit from instant reporting of their income and outgoings across all of their ipagoo accounts.
• Holding accounts in different currencies can dramatically reduce the need to make purchases in a foreign currency that can attract significant fees from traditional banks.
• Customers can order with one or more ipagoo “intelligent” debit card(s)*. These can be linked to different ipagoo accounts at different times, meaning one debit card can pay for things charged in different currencies avoiding typical exchange rate fees and charges.
• Cash-pooling (a way of combining individual account balances when necessary to make payments) and other sophisticated features such as conditional standing orders, direct debits and other payments helps customers to maximise their cash flow. An ipagoo account will only pay a conditional standing order when sufficient funds become available, for example after a specific payment has been made into the ipagoo account.
• Text message or email notifications show when a payment has been received or a large bill has been paid for example, helping SMEs to stay up to date with their cash flow.
• In the future, SMEs will have access to credit and savings products from other banking institutions through their ipagoo account, bringing a unparalleled level of choice and flexibility in financial products to ipagoo customers.

ipagoo, developed by the Orwell Group, is aimed at the growing number of businesses looking to trade and transact internationally. Six in 10 UK small businesses expect to be exporting by 2016, a 20% increase on current levels. According to the Federation of Small Businesses, £792 million could be added to the UK economy each year if more small businesses exported. With the UK Government seeking to double UK exports by 2020, reducing barriers for SMEs to trade internationally is vital.

Sanchez concludes, “Traditional banks are hog-tied by their business model. As we are not lenders, our offering is borderless and immediate. With ipagoo, SMEs can open a current account online and start transacting in Spain, France, Italy and the UK almost straight away. We want to free people from traditional banking limitations and bureaucracy.”

For businesses and merchants £15 per month gives you(from 1st March 2015)
• Up to 3 current accounts, each of them in any currency (£, € or $) and any country (UK, Spain, Italy or France).
• Up to 5 wallets in any currency.
• Up to 2 debit cards that can be linked to any or various of the current account and wallets.
• The ability to add as many business and subsidiaries as required.

• The ability to add as many users as required.

• vPOS functionality.
• Unlimited Direct Debits.
• Unlimited internal payments and transfers between your own accounts.
• Unlimited payments and transfer to other ipagoo clients in same country.
• Up to 18 monthly incoming payments.
• Up to 6 monthly outgoing payments.
• Further payments are subject to terms and conditions and typically have a per units cost.

Availability:
From 1ST March, ipagoo is available in the UK, France, Italy and Spain and will expand into Germany and the rest of Europe over the next two years.