small business

The SMBX: Changing the Way You Invest in Small Businesses

Jenny SmedraLeave a comment

SMBX: A new way to invest

As an individual investor, I am always looking for new and innovative ways to diversify my portfolio and increase my earnings. I already have a healthy range of holdings in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

However, I’m always on the lookout for new ways to generate passive income. That’s where platforms like the SMBX come in. This new marketplace directly engages with its investors to make it simpler for you to invest in small businesses.

The platform is somewhat complicated and new, so here is some explanation of what it is.

What is the SMBX?

The SMBX is new investment platform where small business owners can directly connect to the public. Their model utilizes regulation crowdfunding to allow small businesses to go straight to the source. As their tagline states, individual investors get to “be the bank,” providing an entirely new way to raise capital. Rather than purchasing stock in a specific company, any investor can buy small business financial securities through their marketplace.

What sets the SMBX apart is that they have created a new asset class: the Small Business Bond. The idea is to help small businesses generate capital through bonds instead of relying on bank loans. Private investors purchase bonds, which are debt-based financial assets. The investor (you) loans money to an issuer (the small business) for a period of time. In exchange, the issuer has a legal obligation to repay them, plus interest.

It is a win-win scenario for everyone. Small businesses can bypass the loan process to get the funding they need at better prices than banks offer. Meanwhile, investors have more control over where their money goes since you can pick which small businesses to invest in.

What are the Advantages of Investing with SMBX?

The greatest advantage of the SMBX is that it creates new options for both small businesses and individual investors. Unlike other marketplaces that emphasize equity, the SMBX is transforming small business debt through community engagement. Additionally, investors have the opportunity to affect change by supporting these businesses. What seems like a modest investment to the individual has the potential to impact not only the business owners, but also the people they serve.

For Small Businesses

The greatest benefit to small businesses is that they have the ability to bypass traditional lenders. Small companies no longer have to be captive to bank loans. It is much easier and cheaper to raise capital through Small Business Bonds since they can appeal directly to the public. Furthermore, there are less regulations and fees associated with this type of asset. Here is what their website says:

SMBX value for businesses

For Investors

There are even more advantages for individual investors. Since you get to replace corporate banks, you have the ability to affect change within your community. You support local commerce when you invest in small businesses, allowing them to continue operating. What seems like a modest investment from the individual can have a huge impact on hundreds of people by creating more jobs locally and returning profits back to their communities.

Another benefit is that the SMBX welcomes non-accredited investors to join. The platform is easily accessible and very user-friendly. There are no investors fees and you can begin with as little as $10. The average returns on investments is approximately 6.5%, and it pays the principle plus interest each month.

What are the Disadvantages?

As with any investment, there is always risk. It is possible that your investment will not see profitable returns, and you could lose your money. SMBX is offering bonds, so you’ll want to read the bond prospectus for each offering.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the SMBX is a relatively new platform. Any financial advisor will tell you that it is risky to invest with new firms that have a short history. However, the expertise and combined experience of the founders give me confidence that I’m not throwing my money away.

One thing that I was disappointed with was the limited offerings. Since it is a relatively new marketplace, this makes sense. However, I hope to see a wider variety of small businesses on the marketplace and more frequently updated offerings in the future.

Here are some of the companies in their marketplace offering bonds.

SMBX Offerings

How Do You Start Investing with SMBX?

Getting started was the easiest part. It is simple to sign up. First, you need to create an account, which requires you to enter your personal details. They will ask for typical information including your legal name, address, estimated income, and estimated net worth. Once you verify your email and add a payment method, you are ready to get started. Just be aware that you must link to either a credit card or bank account to your profile.

After you confirm and submit everything, you can then browse the available offerings and choose which one to invest with. I carefully looked at each one, evaluating their financial goals, bond duration, expected yield, and overall mission.

Once I reviewed my options, I chose to purchase my first Small Business Bonds from ChildWise because I am very passionate about education. Furthermore, the bonds I bought have an estimated 8% yield. Not only can I feel good about where I am investing, but it also seems like I will see good returns.

Why Should You Use SMBX to Invest in Small Businesses?

My initial experience with the SMBX has been extremely positive. I feel it is important to find innovative ways to directly connect investors with the small businesses they want to invest in. Through their marketplace, investors are able to engage and interact with the company in an entirely new way. As the markets continue to evolve, it is important that small businesses find ways to thrive.

The best part is that it creates new revenue streams for your portfolio by supporting your local community.  You don’t need thousands of dollars to get started. Even a modest investment in Small Business Bonds with a high yield can significantly increase your earnings. You can get started with as little as $10 and choose from the latest offerings at the SMBX. The bonds pay between 4% and 9%, which is higher than most bank accounts, although you are taking a bit more risk.

By way of a quick wrap up here, if your looking for some additional revenue and you like the idea of investing in small businesses, you can sign up here.

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Insolvency Practitioners’ Tips for Surviving Business Debts

Susan PaigeLeave a comment

Editors note: this article is a departure from our usual topics, but we’re including it here for any of our UK readers who may be small business owners.

Too much debt can be the end of a small business. While some debt can be necessary to grow your company, allowing you to hire new employees or purchase new equipment, too much debt can seriously damage your cash flow.

But if your business debt has crept up on you, you’re not alone. In the UK, insolvency is on the rise. According to The Insolvency Service,  insolvency rose in 2019 compared to 2018, demonstrating that a growing number of small businesses are falling into significant debt.

Here are some ways that you can start to dig yourself out of business debt and survive becoming insolvent.

Chase Up Late Payments

Late payments from your clients can be problematic for your cash flow. While some late payments might be unavoidable due to the kind of business you run, once you’ve submitted an invoice, you should try to ensure that your clients are being chased for payments regularly.

Catching up on your owed payments will help you raise the funds you need to get out of debt. Take a look at all of your outstanding invoices and start to contact the customers, giving them a polite nudge to pay up. For new clients, you might want to consider shortening your payment terms or adding a late-payment penalty to encourage swift payment of invoices.

Consolidate Debt

Debt consolidation is when you transfer your debts into a single business loan. Although this won’t make your debts disappear, merging them all into one loan can reduce your monthly payments and outgoings and help you better manage your money. Rather than having to make lots of separate payments, it becomes much more manageable as it all goes to a single loan provider. Once you have an easier time of repaying your debts, you can start paying it off and pull your business out of trouble.

Negotiate with Creditors

If you find yourself unable to make debt repayments, you could contact your creditors directly and see if you can renegotiate terms. Your creditors might be open to accepting smaller amounts of re-payment each month rather than risk the business defaulting on the loan.

To start the process of negotiation, send your creditors a hardship letter outlining your issues. You should explain why you cannot pay back the loan, what attempts you have made to remedy the situation and explain why your situation is unresolvable. They may be willing to let you pay your debts over a longer period of time, or even accept less money than you owe. From their perspective, they would rather get back some of their money than none of it, so they may be open to negotiation.

Cut Down on Expenses

If possible, you should look at cutting costs in your business to help your cash flow. This can be difficult, and you may have to be ruthless, but it could be essential to saving your business from going under.

Start by reviewing your budget and all your outgoings. Pick out what you can completely do without and cut it off right away. Take a look at where spending could be reduced, like switching to a cheaper supplier. Moving your business operations into a smaller, more affordable location could save thousands in rent, but it can be an expensive initial investment. Discuss your options with your accountant and only continue to pay for the essentials.

Increase Your Income

Boosting your cash flow can help with your long-term business goals outside of debt management. Promote your business to increase your earnings with low-cost promotions like a limited-time sale or offering discounts. If you have a lot of stock, those items represent money that is tied up in your business and unable to pay down debt. By selling it off in a sale, you can quickly free up cash to help ease those debts. For more long-term revenue-boosting, you could set up an affiliate marketing programme, ask for referrals, use ads and much more.

Enter a Company Voluntary Arrangement

If your business becomes insolvent, you could consider a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA). This is an agreement between your business and your creditors that allows you to pay off your debts over a set amount of time, but that blocks any legal action from being taken against you.

A CVA can help improve your cash flow, halt the pressure from your creditors and stop the threat of a winding-up petition. Only a licensed Insolvency Practitioner can create the arrangement and begin the proposal after gathering all the necessary information. A CVA is just one of the solutions to business insolvency. But an Insolvency Practitioner will be able to talk you through your options if your debt becomes unmanageable.

For more of our great articles, read these:

Your Monthly Budget

Five Keys For a $100 Per Month Grocery Bill

The “Buy Once Cry Once Mentality” In Budgeting

Image source: Mike Lawrence.

How to Start Your Own Catering Business

Susan PaigeLeave a comment

If you’re an avid cooking fan, switching to a career in catering can be a great move. Catering and hospitality are two industries which never seem to lose their appeal. People will always be in need of an expert catering company. The question is, how can you get started if you do want to set up your own catering business?

Here, you’ll discover some great tips to help you start your own catering business and boost its chances of success.

Ensure you choose a niche

One of the first things you’ll need to do is figure out your catering niche. This is going to help you brand yourself and ensure you capture the right target market. For example, a particular niche that’s hot right now in the catering sector is vegan. By focusing on one particular niche, it’s going to help you draw in more clients and make your business more of a success.

Don’t be afraid to think outside the box too. Is there a niche that’s currently lacking within the sector? Often, by taking risks that’s where you’ll find the biggest success.

Do you research

Before starting your catering business, you’re going to want to do as much research as possible. This includes researching the qualifications and experience you’ll need, along with information on your competitors. If you want your business to really take off, it’s going to need to offer something unique. So, look at what your competitors are doing and what your business could potentially do differently.

Sustainability is a hot focus within the catering sector right now. So, if you want to market yourself as different, ensuring you’re working with sustainable materials and produce is going to help.

Establish relationships with suppliers

You’re going to need reliable, high-quality supplies when you’ve got your business set up. This means, you’ll want to establish relationships with suppliers. There’s a lot of great catering equipment suppliers out there such as JLA. By establishing relationships with them early on, you’ll save your business potentially a lot of money.

These are just some of the steps you’ll need to take to start up a catering business. Don’t forget to look into the legalities too and funding. You’ll need a lot of equipment to get started so you will need some kind of capital to work with. There’s a lot of finance options open to start-ups so look into the different options before deciding which one is right for you.