Aimed squarely at small- and medium-sized businesses, digital lender BlueVine on Monday launched a “Term Loan” product to diversify its offerings.
The product is the latest in what is now a crowded lending sector.
The loans will range between $5,000 to $250,000, offered through an end-to-end digital experience. The application process is online and a customer can be approved within 10 minutes, whereas it could take traditional lenders weeks.
Based in Redwood, Calif., BlueVine has two core products: Invoice Factoring and Flex Line of Credit. Although the company uses traditional FICO scoring to underwrite its loans, it also includes alternative variables in its credit analysis, applying artificial intelligence and machine learning to the data to determine a borrower’s eligibility.
Traditional lenders typically shy away from loans to small- or medium-sized businesses because the underwriting and regulatory costs outweigh such loans’ financial benefits. That’s where fintechs like BlueVine come in. By using a digital, cloud-based platform, and applying AI and ML to data, they can underwrite SMB loans at lower costs and in a shorter timeframe.
Katherine Li, Director at BlueVine, told Bank Innovation that business owners have used BlueVine’s invoice factoring and line of credit products for everyday or emergency expenses.
“Now, they can also choose financing for larger, one-time expenses, such as purchasing a major piece of equipment or opening a new location,” Li said.
Of course, BlueVine is not the only player in the field. Recently, OakNorth, a digital lender based in the United Kingdom, announced plans to come to the U.S. market.
“It’s important to understand the problem in the SME space,” Sean Hunter, OakNorth chief innovation officer, told Bank Innovation. “There are players like OnDeck, SoFi, and Kabbage, which use bureau data, automate the process and provide loans to small businesses. That works for the really small businesses. At the high-end, there are players like JPMorgan that cater to bigger borrowers. They lend huge amounts and have a whole deal team working on a single loan.”
In the U.K., OakNorth’s loans range between £500,000 ($655,000) to £45 million ($59 million). In the U.S., it will focus on a range between $500,000 to $25 million.
Also See: U.K. Fintech Lender OakNorth Makes Way to the U.S.
As for BlueVine’s Term Loan product, it will have no origination fees. The loan comes with a fixed weekly rate over a six-month or 12-month term. All lines of credit and term loan financing are issued by Celtic Bank, a Utah-chartered Industrial Bank, Member FDIC.
BlueVine’s core product, a revolving line of credit, is provided through what it calls FlexCredit. This means customers can access the credit continually without having to repeatedly apply for a new loan. The funds can be used in part or in full. The amount can be paid back in full or in installments. SMEs typically use these funds for payroll, buying supplies and inventory, among other things.
Also See: SME Lender BlueVine Partners with Blockchain-Based Payments Provider Veem
BlueVine is backed by leading private and institutional investors, including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, Citi Ventures, Nationwide Insurance, and M12 (Microsoft’s Venture Arm). The company has provided more than 15,000 businesses across the U.S. with nearly $2 billion in financing and counting.
Launched in 2013, BlueVine has raised $590 million of venture funding to date, according to Crunchbase.






