Financing company First Circle has unveiled its new smart banking solutions for SMEs during its annual GrowthX event at the SEC headquarters in Makati City.
The announcement marks a major milestone in First Circle’s mission to simplify and speed up financing and banking solutions for Filipino businesses.
First Circle provides SMEs a Business Banking Account, which is developed in partnership with banking partner Netbank. The account promises fee-free and limitless money transfers for SMEs and requires no maintaining balance.
It also includes other features like scheduled payments, batch payments, digital check scanning, and digital check storage. All transactions use InstaPay and are made in real time within a seamless and paperless digital environment, with all deposits insured by the PDIC.
First Circle also launched Solar Financing in partnership with Netsolar, enabling businesses to generate their own solar power and reduce their energy bills at no upfront cost.
First Circle and Netsolar covers the feasibility, permitting, installation, servicing, and insurance of rooftop solar panels for interested clients. The panels can be owned in terms of 8-12 years; until then, clients will only have to pay a small, fixed monthly rate for panel maintenance and insurance.
To their Business Credit Line, which provides fast, flexible, and non-collateral credit of up to ₱20 million for as low as 0.99%, First Circle is adding two new financing products. Business Credit Line Plus offers SMEs loan terms of up to 2 years with interest rates starting at 1.49%. The Express Business Loan, meanwhile, provides ultra-fast bridge financing that gets approved and disbursed in one day – no paperwork or collateral required.
“These products are not designed for monetization — we want SMEs to use them for free, give us feedback, and help us shape financing and smart banking solutions that truly reflects their needs,” said Chris Burgess, chief investment officer of First Circle.
“Every product we design is digital, instant, and created to move as fast as your business. For the past nine years our goal has always been the same: to drive economic growth by pairing SMEs with the financial services they deserve.”
