Retail and eCommerce highlights this week include: Global cross-border payments giant LianLian Global and Uncapped join forces to offer flexible eCommerce finance. The security and scope reduction of Bluefin’s PCI-validated P2PE solution is now available through Etix. New Shipware partnership supports Miva merchants in reducing shipping costs and improving customer experience. As a leading post-purchase eCommerce platform, AfterShip’s SOC 2 Compliance ensures customer data is protected
LianLian Global and Uncapped joins forces to offer flexible eCommerce finance
LianLian Global, a global cross-border payments service provider, and London-based lend tech Uncapped have announced a strategic partnership. The partnership provides eCommerce entrepreneurs and online merchants in the US and UK with access to fast and flexible financing to grow their business through the LianLian Global platform.
LianLian Global’s partnership with Uncapped will enable US and UK registered eCommerce companies to secure financing from $100,000 to $10m. without any equity, interest or personal guarantees in under 48-hours, to grow their business by securing inventory, acquiring new customers or hiring more staff.
Online merchants often struggle to secure funds with traditional lenders. According to CB Insights, Q1 of 2022 saw the lowest quarterly total of funding to eCommerce companies since 2020. Additionally, the World Bank found globally, Small to Medium Enterprises have unmet finance needs of approximately $5.2 trillion a year. This is almost 1.5 times the current lending market for this segment of businesses.
The finance partnership is designed to provide much-needed financing options for eCommerce businesses. Eligible companies can expect a transparent finance structure with a flat fee as low as 2% on the capital provided.
The partnership announcement comes shortly after LianLian Global expanded its payments services to the UK. In August, it launched a cross-border wallet in the US at the end of June this year.
LianLian Global has offices in 12 countries that help more than 1.4 million eCommerce stores grow their cross-border businesses. LianLian Global owns over 60 licenses worldwide.
Bluefin and Etix announce partnership for PCI-Validated Point-to-Point Encryption (P2PE) and payment processing
Bluefin, the recognized integrated payments leader in encryption and tokenization technologies to protect payments and sensitive data, has announced a new partnership with Etix. The partnership will provide their ticketing clients with integrated payment processing capabilities backed by PCI-validated point-to-point encryption (P2PE).
Etix is an international web-based ticketing service provider for the entertainment, travel and sports industries. The company operates in 40 countries on four continents. Etix provides secure access control ticketing infrastructure solutions, ticket marketing services, and robust Ecommerce fulfilment capabilities. Etix clients include venues, arenas, festivals, fairs, performing arts centres, and multi-use facilities.
Bluefin specializes in PCI-validated P2PE solutions that secure credit and debit card transactions by encrypting all data within a PCI-approved point-of-entry device. This prevents clear-text cardholder data from being available in the device or the merchant’s system where it could be exposed to malware. Data decryption is only done offsite in a Bluefin hardware security module (HSM).
Bluefin’s PayConex platform provides integrated and stand-alone face-to-face, mobile, unattended, MOTO and eCommerce payment processing. The solution is backed by PCI-validated P2PE and tokenization of PII, PHI, payment and ACH account data entered online.
Miva and Shipware partnership to help online sellers optimise shipping
Miva, an eCommerce software and service provider for mid-size and enterprise merchants, and Shipware have formed a partnership. The new partnership aims to help online sellers reduce shipping costs and improve customer satisfaction. Shipware is a strategic consulting and cost optimisation firm for volume shippers and businesses outsourcing fulfilment.
The new collaboration between Miva and Shipware gives merchants access to the tools they need to optimise their logistics for peak efficiency and effectiveness. Shipware’s team uses data modelling and industry expertise to provide merchants with personalised logistics consulting. This helps them to audit carrier invoices, analyse data, and optimise contracts with shipping providers. This complements Miva’s advanced shipping logic and fulfilment features, which give merchants the ability to set a variety of customer and criteria-based rules for order processing and shipping and compliance requirements.
AfterShip announces SOC 2 compliance, taking “Enterprise Ready” to the next level
AfterShip, a post-purchase and shipment tracking platform for eCommerce businesses, has completed the SOC 2 Type 1 examination. The company is now officially SOC 2 compliant.
SOC (System and Organization Controls) 2 is widely recognised as one of the tech industry’s most important and rigorous compliance standards related to managing customer data. Developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), SOC 2 evaluates various criteria related to controls and processes for how a company manages customer data based on Trust Services Criteria for security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. AfterShip’s certification puts them at the forefront of enterprise data security with the likes of Salesforce, Shopify, and Magento.
As part of the attestation process, an independent auditor verifies the existence of AfterShip’s system description. In addition to the internal controls designed and implemented to meet the requirements based on selected Trust Services Criteria. The SOC 2 Type 1 attestation report covers AfterShip’s tracking, returns, and Automizely Marketing products.
By becoming SOC 2 compliant, AfterShip demonstrates to the market that it has made a serious commitment to compliance. Furthermore, it shows that its internal processes and controls are suitable for managing customer data for enterprise clients working at the highest levels of information security.
