Close Brothers shares their perspective on data quality, customer experience, and a long-standing partnership with Lendscape.
Watch the interview with Patrick Somerville-Large, Head of Strategy, Close Brothers Invoice Finance:
The growing importance of high-quality data
Close Brothers Invoice Finance has long supported businesses with flexible funding solutions. In recent years, the quality of data available from customers has become one of the most significant challenges shaping the invoice finance market.
Patrick Somerville-Large, Head of Strategy, explains that “one of the biggest challenges we’re seeing in the invoice finance market is definitely the quality of data that we’re able to get from our customers.” He emphasises that having reliable, accurate information at the start of the relationship is crucial, adding that “it’s so important that we get really good quality data right at the beginning of our customer journey, because that builds and informs the rest of the relationship.”
Strong data at onboarding sets the tone for the entire customer lifecycle, influencing assessment, monitoring, and the level of support the team can provide.
A partnership built on collaboration
Close Brothers has worked with Lendscape for many years. Patrick describes the relationship simply: “We have partnered with Lendscape for forever, basically, and it’s been such a collaborative relationship.”
One of the most valuable aspects of this partnership is the ability to shape platform improvements over time. Patrick notes that the team has been able to approach Lendscape with ideas for enhancements and see them implemented, saying that “we’ve been able to go to Lendscape with improvements to the lending platform and actually see those enhancements come into our live system.”
This ongoing collaboration ensures the platform continues to evolve in a way that supports both operational efficiency and customer-focused delivery.
Using data to build better customer experiences
Patrick also discusses how Close Brothers is using new tools to deepen its understanding of client needs. The team recently trialled Lendscape’s Open Accounting capability, and he shares that “we’ve tried the Open Accounting package quite recently” and have been able “to gain insights into the customer’s data.”
These insights help the business tailor support more accurately. Patrick explains that “having that data is really allowing us to be more effective with customers and build a bespoke product for them that really suits their needs.”
Better data leads to better decisions, more tailored structures, and ultimately a stronger client experience.
Reflections from Lendscape Live
Patrick also reflects on his experience of attending Lendscape Live. He describes the event as “really fantastic,” adding that “there’s just so many opportunities out there at the moment.” Hearing from industry speakers offered useful perspectives on how invoice finance may evolve, with Patrick saying it was “great to hear what they think the industry is going to look like in the coming years.”
Hear the full story
To learn more about Patrick’s perspective on data quality, customer experience, platform collaboration, and the future of invoice finance, watch the interview above.
