ShipBob is helping brands and merchants gain access to new financing.
The supply chain and fulfillment platform provider has launched ShipBob Capital, enabling its U.S. customers to now apply for working capital through the company.
J.P. Morgan-backed B2B payments platform Slope is partnering with ShipBob to operate the financing program. Slope, which offers short-term financing as one of its primary features, can give merchants a line of credit that can be withdrawn at any time.
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ShipBob itself will not be doing any of the lending. The third-party logistics (3PL) firm does not evaluate customers’ loan applications, nor extend a line of credit to any applicant.
Eligible merchants can get approved for up to $250,000 instantly, according to the 3PL. To qualify, businesses must have an employer identification number and account for more than $100,000 in annual revenue.
ShipBob clients can access “up to millions” of dollars in as soon as two business days, choosing from a variety of repayment plans with annual interest rates as low as 9 percent. Slope loans the capital to businesses via direct deposit into their bank account.
The application process takes roughly five minutes to complete and is designed to simplify the financing process with more transparent terms, ShipBob says. The company also says the solution will not include hidden fees or lengthy contracts.
Claudio Storelli, executive chairman of soccer gear manufacturer and seller Storelli Group, said his company got approval for the program in January. He highlighted in a statement that the brand gained access to a six-figure line of credit less than 24 hours after applying.
Dhruv Saxena, ShipBob CEO and co-founder, said the 3PL struck up the partnership with Slope to assist e-commerce business owners as they deal with day-to-day challenges. Merchants may need to acquire an upfront investment to hire more staff or cover other expenses. These sellers are also tasked with scaling to meet customer demand, all while better managing inventory turnover.
“Our merchants can access the funding they need to invest in their business and scale, whether that means stocking up on more inventory or launching new products, without worrying about cash flow constraints,” said Saxena in a statement. “We want to help enable our merchants to compete and thrive in the fast-evolving world of e-commerce by providing the resources they need to unlock their full potential in the most convenient way possible.”
The launch of ShipBob Capital is a rare combination in the logistics industry, in which a fulfillment provider is teaming up with a credit and financing platform to assist its clients.
Many supply chain financing companies exist to help buyers—which can sometimes be brands and retailers—make payments to suppliers if they don’t have enough working capital. In this case, suppliers usually receive early payment on their invoices via a third-party funder, which the buyer can pay on a later due date.
While ShipBob’s offering isn’t a supply chain financing solution since their clients are simply requesting access to new capital, the platform gets to the root of assisting mid-market sellers and SMBs that may not often have the cash or operating history to qualify for traditional financing.
The partnership comes as consumer and business concerns about inflation persist. According to a U.S. Chamber of Commerce survey, 55 percent of small businesses owners and operators cite inflation costs as the biggest challenge they faced in the 2024 fourth quarter.
As for ShipBob, the ShipBob Capital partnership announcement comes weeks after new chief revenue officer Jeetu Mahtani joined the fulfillment provider.
The company press release on Mahtani’s appointment says he will focus on driving new revenue by “identifying and closing new merchants and expanding their services with ShipBob over time, improving the complete customer journey.”
But Saxena’s statement on the January hiring alludes to Mahtani’s skills in expanding a business “from a single product offering to a multi-product platform,”—characteristics that line up with ShipBob’s expansion into working capital.
“I’m particularly energized by the opportunity to help solve some of the most complex challenges facing modern e-commerce businesses,” Mahtani said in a statement. “I look forward to bringing ShipBob’s expanding suite of solutions, including B2B fulfillment capabilities and global offerings to our existing base of merchants.”
Already counting OpenAI CEO Sam Altman as an investor, Slope secured $65 million in a financing round of its own last July, with J.P. Morgan Payments committing as the lead. In total, Slope has raised $77 million in equity and $175 million in debt financing.
