IBM administers $1bn SMB cash injection

Finance scheme aimed at helping smaller firms adopt new technologies will go through VARs

IBM is set to open up a $1bn (£627m) finance pot to help SMBs take advantage of technologies such as analytics and cloud.

According to the vendor, approvals – which will be offered through IBM’s channel partners – will often be made in less than 60 seconds through its IBM Global Financing scheme.

The announcement was initially made in the US, but CRN understands that the offer may well extend to business partners in the UK.

Big Blue is also launching a set of solutions which include workload optimised systems comprising combined hardware, software and services offerings focused on technologies such as cloud, analytics, collaboration and security – all tailored to SMBs.

When deployed, IBM claims the offering will save SMBs up to 50 per cent in cost and time. Recent research by AMI Partners revealed that SMBs in the US will spend more than $49bn on cloud services in 2015, almost double the size of the market today.

Andy Monshaw, general manager of IBM mid-market business, said: "SMBs are the engines of new ideas for our economy and for economic growth. Curiosity and new thinking are what sets them apart. We are coming out of a recession, and a lot of times, it is the small business entrepreneur who leads the way. Significant efforts need to be made to provide a strong foundation for SMBs to establish their business for growth.

“As information has become the new currency, the ability of SMBs to survive in an increasingly competitive and global environment is largely determined by their use of new technologies such as cloud and analytics to quickly access the right information and use it as a competitive advantage."