63% of SMEs have not changed their business account provider for five years or more

Research shows how SMEs are not better served by today’s financial service providers in the face of fractured payment methods and the challenges of international trade.

London, UK – March 25, 2020 – Company Revolution, an innovative global business account designed for growth, speed, ease and security, today released the findings of its “Vision 2020: take a closer look at archaic banking practices“report. Based on a survey of 602 UK, French and Polish SMEs, the report reveals that SMEs remain loyal to traditional financial service providers despite new demands from digitally driven companies.

More than half of SMEs are now doing international trade in some form or another, and an additional 13% plan to start doing so soon. In 2008, sixty percent of all transactions were paid in cash. Fast forward to a decade later and the payments are made in different ways. Thirty-four of the SME clients pay by wire transfer, 23% by cash, 23% by credit / debit card and 19% by other means.

Despite this, nearly a quarter of SMEs have not changed their professional account provider since 2008. In total, 63% have had the same provider for more than five years. Why? Thirty-eight percent of SMEs in Poland and France, and 27% in the UK, cited proximity to branches as a key factor in selecting their current commercial account providers.

Just over a quarter of SMEs also said they always visit a physical branch of their supplier every day. More than half say they rarely or never call their supplier, and just under half rarely or never visit a branch. In contrast, 43% of SMBs use web / application interfaces to manage their business accounts on a daily basis and an additional 30% do so every week.

However, the results suggest that the status quo is about to change, with just under half of SMEs revealing that they plan to switch business account providers within the next twelve months.

What small businesses like about business account partnerships is telling. Eighty percent of SMBs rated 24/7 access to their accounts as important. Safety (89%), transparency of fees (89%) and low fees (86%) were also highly rated.

The attributes SMEs want from a business account provider are also revealing. Half of SMEs want a business account to be user-friendly – the most popular attribute among respondents. Automation of regular tasks (28%) and “benefits” (25%) were the other two most desirable attributes.

“Most SMEs have stuck with long-standing traditional business relationships, but that is about to change,” said Vaidas Adomauskas, Product Manager, Revolut Business. “Today’s global SMEs are embracing accounting or collaboration solutions like Xero and Slack, which make it easier to run a business. They are looking for features that make managing their business finances faster, more flexible and more conducive to global growth ”.

“Our research reveals that SMEs expect a similar business account service,” Adomauskas said. “They’re less reliant on cash and physical branches, and more focused on user-friendly web and mobile experiences. Naturally, the 42% of SMBs looking to switch business account providers in the next twelve months will look to those. that deliver digital experiences that save time and money, leaving SMEs to focus on growing their business ”.

For more information on the current relationships and priorities of SME corporate accounts, download our white paper “Vision 2020: A Closer Look at Archaic Banking Practices”, here https://growth.revolut.com/downloadwhitepaper_2020.

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Methodology:
The main research was commissioned by Revolut Business and conducted by Sapio Research in November 2019. The sample consisted of business owners, CEOs, senior executives, CFOs and CFOs, from SMEs in 1 to 250 employees. The sample was split across the UK, France and Poland and spanned several verticals including financial services, retail, professional services, manufacturing and hospitality.

About Revolut Business
Revolut Business is the alternative banking business service offering based on Revolut applications, with more than 300,000 business customers worldwide. The service was launched in July 2017 in the UK and Europe and allows businesses to sign up for multi-currency accounts in minutes, transfer money inexpensively and easily, and issue employees with credit cards. company for free worldwide spending.

For more information please contact:
CCgroup for Revolut Business
Florie Lhuillier / Connor Griffiths
T: +44 777 542 3467
E: [email protected]