Lloyds Banking Group has poured €3 million into technology firm Enigio, underscoring its commitment to advancing the digital documentation landscape within the trade sector.
This €3m investment is a part of a broader raise which garnered approximately €6m. Spearheaded by Lloyds Banking Group, established backers such as Stockhorn Capital and MOOR Holding also marked their support.
Delving into Enigio’s offerings, the company has masterminded trace:original, a unique solution designed to eradicate the dependence on manual transfer of paper documents in trade operations. With this innovative tool, businesses can seamlessly digitise physical original documents like promissory notes, bills of exchange, and bills of lading. The objective? A swifter, cost-effective, and foolproof transition to digital.
A considerable portion of the funds is earmarked for Enigio’s mission to proliferate the digital presence in the trade sphere. Currently, of the 4 billion trade documents in transit worldwide each day, a mere fraction (under 1%) are digital. With its trace:original solution, Enigio is poised to usher in a new era where digital trade documents become the norm.
Lloyds Banking Group’s recent investment in Enigio is not an isolated incident. The bank’s FinTech Investment team has been proactively scouting and backing businesses that resonate with their growth strategy. This dual focus ensures that these businesses not only bolster the bank’s growth but also roll out novel technology solutions catering to the clientele.
Kirsty Rutter, director of fintech investment at Lloyds Banking Group said, “I am excited to announce our investment in Enigio – the latest of many that continue our strategic growth and ambition in the fintech sector. Our belief in Enigio’s innovative technology and potential drives our commitment to help them become the standard solution in digital, authoritative, and original documentation for industries worldwide. We are really looking forward to working with them more closely, and seeing how else this partnership can benefit Lloyds Banking Group clients.”
Gwynne Master, managing director, lending and working capital, Lloyds Bank said, “Lloyds Bank has worked closely with Enigio for a number of years. We’re proud of what we have achieved together, from the UK’s first Digital Promissory Note, to our digitisation work to streamline trade processes for our clients. This investment in Enigio is the latest significant milestone in our partnership. As we head into an exciting time for the trade industry, with the UK Electronic Trade Documents Act round the corner, we look forward to being at the forefront of future innovation with Enigio and helping businesses unlock the benefits of digital trade.”
Torgny Gunnarsson, Enigio’s chairman of the board added, “With Lloyds Banking Group’s investment in Enigio, we are welcoming a strategic investor who, alongside our existing major investors, Stockhorn Capital and MOOR Holding, will enable Enigio to accelerate the market penetration of trace:original, with the ambition to become the global technology of choice for digital original and freely transferable documents. We are very much looking forward to working closely with Lloyds Banking Group on our exciting journey ahead.”
Patrik Zekkar, CEO of Enigio, said, “I’m very pleased to strengthen the partnership with a key industry player like Lloyds Banking Group. This will further strengthen Enigio’s capabilities and capacity to deliver a market leading solution for electronic trade documents more broadly, in a time of transition of trade driven by the cross-market demand and supported by regulatory changes. We look forward to delivering on the massive opportunity in efficiency, sustainability, accessibility and much more for, and in collaboration with, the industry by digitising trade.”
Keep up with all the latest FinTech news here
Copyright © 2023 FinTech Globa
