Kofi Ndaikate is a prominent voice in the fintech landscape, possessing deep expertise in the evolution of payment systems and the integration of artificial intelligence within corporate finance. As the industry moves away from static spreadsheets and toward dynamic, automated workflows, Ndaikate has been at the forefront of advising how businesses can leverage technology to solve age-old liquidity issues. His insights into agentic finance offer a glimpse into a future where human oversight and machine efficiency coexist to eliminate the friction of global commerce. The following discussion explores the recent $18 million capital injection into this space, the mechanics of reducing late payments, and the strategic shift toward a global finance infrastructure.
You recently secured $18 million in Series A funding, bringing your total capital to over $30 million in less than two years. How do you plan to allocate this fresh capital to scale operations, and what specific strategic value do veteran operators like Andrey Khusid bring to your growth roadmap?
The primary objective for this $18 million infusion is to transition from a focused invoice payment tool into a comprehensive, automated finance platform. With the backing of Index Ventures for the third time, we are doubling down on our engineering and product teams to build out what we call “agentic” infrastructure. Having veteran operators like Andrey Khusid, the founder of Miro, and Stéphane Kurgan on board provides us with a blueprint for scaling a collaborative, global product. Their experience in building high-growth platforms is invaluable as we move toward our goal of helping companies manage cash and financial operations more holistically. This total capital of over $30 million gives us the runway to solve deep-rooted inefficiencies that have plagued the B2B sector for decades.
Finance teams are shifting toward “agentic” platforms that combine AI with human oversight to handle repetitive tasks. Which specific financial workflows are most ripe for this type of automation, and how do you ensure that human decision-makers remain in control when AI manages sensitive customer interactions?
We believe that credit control and customer communication are the areas most ready for an agentic overhaul. Traditionally, these workflows involve a lot of manual follow-ups and data entry, which are prone to human error and delay. Our approach involves customer agents that automate the calculation of late fees and the delivery of reminder sequences, but we intentionally keep the ultimate judgment in the hands of the finance team. By blending high-quality payments infrastructure with artificial intelligence, we can handle the heavy lifting of repetitive tasks while ensuring a human reviews the most sensitive interactions. This balance allows a business to maintain its professional relationships while benefiting from the speed and precision of an automated system.
While 63% of businesses are typically paid late, automated systems can reduce that figure to as low as 9%. What technical features, such as accelerated direct debit mandates or instant alternative payment links, are most vital for achieving this, and how does daily settlement impact a company’s overall liquidity?
The gap between the national late payment average of 63% and our observed rate of 9% is largely closed by removing friction from the payment process. One of the most vital features we have developed is a direct debit mandate system that is signed three times faster than traditional methods. Furthermore, we provide automatic alternative payment links the moment a direct debit fails, ensuring that the recovery process begins instantly without manual intervention. Switching from weekly to daily settlements is another game-changer, as it ensures that cash is reflected in a company’s balance sheet almost immediately. This accelerated velocity of capital is essential for small and medium-sized enterprises that need consistent liquidity to fund their daily operations.
New tools are emerging to automate credit control tasks like late fee calculations and tailored reminder sequences. How do you design these agents to adapt to different customer behaviors, and what steps should a finance department take to integrate these automated sequences without damaging client relationships?
Designing these agents requires a deep understanding of customer behavior, as a one-size-fits-all reminder sequence can often feel cold or aggressive. We tailor our automated sequences to reflect the specific history and payment patterns of individual clients, ensuring that the tone remains appropriate for the relationship. For a finance department to integrate these tools successfully, they should start by mapping out their existing accounting software integrations to ensure data flows correctly. Transparency is also key, which is why we tie our pricing models strictly to successful payments, aligning our incentives with the business’s success. This ensures that the automation is seen as a helpful tool for resolution rather than a purely punitive measure for the client.
Moving beyond invoice payments toward a global finance platform requires a shift in infrastructure and mission. What are the primary hurdles in expanding automated financial workflows across different international markets, and how do you maintain transparent, success-based pricing models as the complexity of these services increases?
The biggest hurdles in international expansion are the fragmented regulatory environments and the varying payment preferences across different regions. To overcome this, we are building a robust infrastructure that can handle diverse money movement rules while maintaining a simple user experience. Our updated mission to help businesses around the world build better businesses reflects this broader, global scope. As we scale, we are committed to maintaining a success-based pricing model because it provides clarity and builds trust with our users. Even as the complexity of our agentic platform grows, we believe that businesses should only pay when they see tangible results in their cash flow.
What is your forecast for business finance automation?
I forecast that within the next five years, the concept of a “manual invoice” will become an anomaly as agentic finance becomes the industry standard. We will see a shift where 90% of routine financial operations are handled by AI agents that communicate seamlessly between different companies’ ERP systems. This will lead to a massive reduction in the 63% late payment statistic we see today, effectively freeing up billions in trapped liquidity for the global economy. Ultimately, finance teams will move away from being data processors and will instead become strategic advisors who use real-time data to drive growth. The future of money movement is not just about digital transfers; it is about intelligent, self-executing workflows that eliminate the administrative burden of doing business.
