Previse has been accepted onto the UK government's procurement platform, making its instant payments technology available to thousands of UK government departments. The G-Cloud 10 framework connects public-sector bodies with service providers that have been rigorously tested and vetted to ensure quality service delivery and value for money for the public sector. Previse's machine-learning/artificial intelligence technology, which allows organisations to offer instant payment of invoices to all suppliers, is now available on the G-Cloud 10 procurement platform. The company says its technology integrates with buyers’ existing payment systems so there is minimal process change for buyers or suppliers.

Late payments has long been a problem in the UK public sector and Previse hopes its technology can tackle the problem of public sector organisations struggling to pay suppliers quickly and meet payment terms. According to the Federation of Small Businesses, 88 per cent of suppliers to central government and 91 per cent to local government have been paid late.

Certainty for small suppliers

Paul Uppal, the UK’s small business commissioner, said: “The cash-flow challenges that slow and late payments create mean small businesses can be shut out of big public sector contracts. We want winning public sector contracts to be good news for suppliers, encouraging more competition and ensuring the best small suppliers apply for them. By offering instant payments, public sector organisations can give small suppliers the certainty and stability they need to bid for these contracts confidently.”

Previse's CEO, Paul Christensen, commented: “With Previse on the G-Cloud, public organisations can easily and quickly begin offering instant invoice payment to even their smallest suppliers. This is well beyond simply cutting out late payments, this is setting a brand-new standard for supplier payments.”