We are proud to have built strong, long-lasting relationships with many clients, gaining a deep understanding of their needs and supporting their businesses as they evolve. A great example of this is our 25 year partnership with MCB Factors.
Founded in 1999 and headquartered in Port Louis, MCB Factors is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Mauritius Commercial Bank Group (MCB). Jean-Mee Ernest, Managing Director at MCB Factors, discusses their growth journey and how Lendscape has contributed to their success.
Jean-Mee Ernest, Managing Director,
MCB Factors
Pioneering factoring service
MCB Factoring launched the first factoring service here in Mauritius in 1999. Having reviewed several factoring systems, the company directors at the time chose iFactor - Lendscape's original software - due to its functionality and industry reputation. I joined the company in an operational role in 1999 and, although I had come from a banking background, factoring was still a niche product in the region and a completely new experience for me.
Expanding and evolving
We only offered domestic recourse factoring in 1999. Today, our range includes domestic recourse, non-recourse, import, export, and collection only factoring, and our volumes have increased dramatically over the years. The Lendscape system has been completely reliable and stable throughout, scaling and adapting along with our business. Back when I worked in Operations, if someone in the team said, "The system isn't calculating correctly", I could always be 100% confident that the issue wasn't with the technology.
When we decided to migrate to a new factoring solution in 2019, the selection process was overseen by MCB Group, with rigorous compliance requirements and the involvement of a central Procurement team. We were already familiar with the market and its players, so quickly shortlisted vendors and Lendscape emerged as the winner. Our positive experiences with the team and technology over the years were definitely a deciding factor. The migration took place during COVID, and despite the challenges of remote working and the fact that it wasn't possible to have any on-site support from Lendscape, the migration was successfully completed in 2021.
Staying ahead of client needs
I'm a huge fan of Lendscape and the way their technology helps us to stay ahead of our clients' needs. A few years ago, 'financing in less than 48 hours' was a big deal. Now, businesses expect faster funding and we can offer same-day financing, typically achieving a turnaround time of 7 or 8 hours. Another game-changer has been the Lendscape Client Portal, which allows our clients to access information, submit requests, and approve actions via tablets or phones at any time. These real-time insights equip our clients to be more proactive, for example quickly identifying and following up with debtors who are late with payments.
Lendscape has also grown and evolved over the years, of course. Ten years ago, when we logged a call with their Service Desk, I knew the names of the three people most likely to respond. Today, even with a larger support team handling more clients, we continue to receive great, personal service. Their team's industry knowledge means they truly understand our business, and with Lendscape's technology now being used across many different countries, we benefit from their experience and expertise on a global scale.
MCB Factors has grown from a team of 3 in 1999 to 23 people, and 10 hands-on users of Lendscape. Looking ahead, we want to continue to develop the market for reverse factoring, which is a relatively new service for us and for Mauritius. We're also exploring the introduction of other new products and progressing our cloud migration plans, and aim to expand access to the Lendscape Client Portal. It has been very successful with the large corporate clients we've already rolled it out to, and we want more of our clients to benefit from it.
Looking ahead to new opportunities
We're constantly moving towards being more automated and less reliant on paper, as our clients want more online services and we aim to boost our efficiency. Even so, we still prioritise personal relationships and our Account Executives will often choose to visit clients in person, rather than use the banking group's remote access service. These meetings allow us to truly get to know our clients and understand their business better, and they are always happy to see us, so it works well for everyone. With Lendscape as our technology partner, we know we can continue delivering the best possible service for our clients and achieve whatever we set our sights on next.
Article contributed by:
Jean-Mee Ernest, Managing Director,
MCB Factors