Fintech company Froda has shown strong growth in recent years. Since its inception, Froda has supported small and medium-sized enterprises with over SEK 10.5 billion. Now the company is taking the next step in its growth journey by entering the Irish market. The expansion takes place through the partnership with Treyd.

- Creating a globally viable financing solution for small businesses has been our goal since the beginning. The past year's expansion is clear evidence that we have come a long way on this journey. Last year, we helped entrepreneurs in five different markets access finance. In 2024, we hope to double that number," said Olle Lundin, CEO and co-founder of Froda.

In recent years, Froda has focused on international expansion through Froda Embedded. In 2023, the company established itself in two new markets and increased its international portfolio by over 800%. Froda Embedded is a technology platform that other fintech companies and banks can join to offer financing or business loans to their customers.

- "With our Embedded financing product, we can help growth companies offer their customers flexible financing solutions through simple API integrations. Partnering with Treyd means we can help each other scale and make our financing solution available to many more merchants," says Stella Snickare, VP Froda Embedded.

One of the partners that has joined Froda Embedded is fintech company Treyd, whose 'Sell first, pay supplier later' solution has made financing inventory purchases easier, more flexible and more accessible for growing businesses trading physical products.

Using Froda Embedded's API integrations, Treyd can now offer even more flexible financing options to merchants in Ireland as well.

- The partnership with Froda has enabled a faster expansion, both geographically and operationally. It has helped us to support even more merchants with financing," says Peter Beckman, CEO and co-founder of Treyd.

The entry into the Irish market brings Froda's presence to seven markets: Sweden, the UK, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Ireland.

Janna Naser, the founder of Alga Insulation, was awarded Froda's Female Entrepreneur of the Future scholarship yesterday during the Tomorrow ́s Founders event. The 19-year-old from Örebro now wants to revolutionize the construction industry by producing insulation from algae.

The Female Entrepreneur of the Future scholarship aims to promote female entrepreneurs in the start-up phase and inspire more women to start businesses. Through the award, Janna now receives SEK 100,000 to invest in the company.

- "It's an incredible honor just to be nominated for Froda's scholarship for future female entrepreneurs. But to also win feels incredibly big. We are in great need of money in the start-up phase and the scholarship will help me realize my visions for Alga Insulation, says Janna Naser, founder of Alga Insulation.

During high school, the 19-year-old started Alga Insulation to address the problem created by algae washed up from the sea, which leads to eutrophication if left behind. Since graduating, she has continued to run the company and, with the help of researchers at RISE, the Research Institute of Sweden, Alga Insulation is developing insulation materials based on seaweed. The method has the potential not only to lead to more sustainable construction but also to help reduce eutrophication in the oceans.

- Janna has distinguished herself with her courage and her ability to gather an impressive network around her vision to revolutionize the construction industry. The construction industry today accounts for a large part of Sweden's total emissions and through Alga Insulation's solution - she not only addresses a critical problem but has also introduced a groundbreaking solution with great potential to change the world for the better, says Olle Lundin, CEO and co-founder of Froda.

The construction industry currently accounts for more than a fifth of Sweden's total emissions each year. Alga Insulation wants to reduce emissions by revolutionizing how insulation is produced. According to Janna, the hope is that production will be up and running within two years.

- Through our solution, we hope to contribute to the construction industry becoming increasingly sustainable. Demand for insulation materials is increasing and many are adding insulation to reduce high electricity costs. We hope to have a finished product on the market within two years," says Janna Naser.

Jury's motivation
The winner of the Female Entrepreneur of the Future award has not only distinguished herself with her courage, her knowledge and her strong ability to rally an impressive network around her vision, but also demonstrated a strong drive in an industry that is rarely characterized by simplicity when it comes to change. Through her company, she has not only addressed a critical problem, but has also introduced a groundbreaking solution with real potential to change our world for the better.

This year's winner is a role model who has dug gold where others see problems, and we hope this mentality will continue to inspire, and warm up, many generations after her.

About the scholarship
The scholarship is Froda's way of recognizing young female entrepreneurs, and the Future Female Entrepreneur award was established in 2022. The scholarship is worth SEK 100,000 and aims to provide young women who want to or have started a business with capital that enables the realization of their idea.

The assessment criteria for the grant are drive, sustainability, creativity, feasibility, problem solving, the impact the company would have and the impact the money would have on the company.

More than half of Europe's small businesses struggle to access finance. As a step in making business finance more accessible, Froda is expanding its partnership with Visa and scaling up its offering in Europe. This means that more fintech companies and banks can access Froda's card-based embedded lending product and offer business loans to their customers.

More than 50% of Europe's small businesses lack external finance, despite it being a fundamental factor for growth.* In times of economic stress, access to finance becomes even more important. The partnership between Froda and Visa will address this and help SMEs access finance in real time with automated credit decisions and payments through Visa Direct.

- "Card-based embedded lending is an important step in making business finance available to small and medium-sized enterprises in Europe. Through our joint effort, we hope to promote innovation and growth in Europe," says Philip Konopik, Regional Managing Director Nordics & Baltics at Visa.

Through the expanded partnership, Visa and Froda aim to bring card-based embedded lending to more players in more markets. The product works in the same way as a traditional business loan, but thanks to Visa's global card infrastructure, card-based embedded lending is both faster and easier to scale to different markets. This creates opportunities for other fintech companies and banks to both scale their operations and expand their offerings.

- The partnership with Visa is a major milestone for us, so it feels great to expand it. We are proud of what we have achieved so far and are convinced that the solution will help entrepreneurs in Europe, Olle Lundin, CEO and co-founder of Froda.

Card-based embedded lending was launched in June and is available in Denmark through Lunar and in Germany through Kontist, part of the Ageras Group. In 2024, Visa and Froda plan to expand the product to more markets and partners. This expansion is in line with Froda's vision to provide accessible and innovative financial solutions for small and medium-sized businesses across Europe.

- Since the product was launched in June, we have successfully launched it with two partners in two markets and seen a great interest within the industry. We look forward to expanding card-based embedded lending to further markets and giving more entrepreneurs access to finance," says Stella Snickare, VP Froda Embedded.

The product was launched in June and is available in Denmark through Lunar and in Germany through Kontist, part of the Ageras Group.

* Eurostat, Statista, Allianz, Froda