Lavu Launches Lavu Capital to Offer Accessible Funding to Restaurants

Solution Powered by Parafin Provides Flexible Capital to Restaurants as Industry Continues Recovery

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lavu, a major global restaurant software and payments solution provider built by restaurant people, today announces Lavu Capital, offering restaurant merchants cash advances to provide funding that can be used to help run and grow their businesses. Powered by Parafin, a full-stack, embedded fintech company, Lavu Capital gives restaurants, primarily small businesses, easy access to fast capital that typically is not available through traditional bank financing.

Unlike a loan that charges interest, merchants agree to pay a portion of future sales in exchange for receiving fast and efficient funding, all for one low, flat capital fee based on the cash advance amount. With Lavu Capital, pre-approved merchants that demonstrate consistent or increasing sales get access to a cash advance that can be used for any business expense such as equipment, staff, marketing and rent costs. This eliminates the application and credit check requirements that often preclude small businesses from receiving bank funding.

Here’s how it works:

• Eligible merchants view their pre-approved advance offers in their Lavu Dashboard, toggle the slider to select the capital amount that best fits their business and verify bank account details in order to accept the cash advance.
• After accepting, the merchant receives the funds directly to their bank account in 1-2 business days. This requires no additional paperwork and has no impact on credit score.
• The merchant will pay a one-time, flat capital fee, that depends on the amount of accepted capital.
• Payment is automated on a set pay schedule and is based on a percentage of sales through Lavu determined prior to accepting the capital. There is no interest, no minimum payment, and there are no late fees.

“It’s frustrating to see how many restaurant owners don’t qualify for traditional loans despite their strong track records, ” said Saleem Khatri, CEO of Lavu. “In the same way we helped thousands of restaurants quickly transition to online ordering to survive the pandemic, we are launching Lavu Capital to help more restaurants keep their doors open during challenging times.”

“Our mission at Parafin is to grow small businesses by making it easier and faster to access financial services, starting with capital,” said Sahill Poddar, CEO, Parafin. “We’re honored to work with platforms like Lavu that are heavily invested in the growth of the thousands of restaurants they work with, in order to deliver on this mission.”

New and existing restaurant merchants can learn more at https://lavu.com/newsroom/lavu-launches-lavu-capital-accessible-funding-restaurants or contact Lavu Customer Success.

About Lavu

Lavu is the world’s leading restaurant management platform for small and medium-sized restaurants. The company’s products include an award-winning mobile point-of-sale, online ordering, payment processing and accounts payable suite. Embodying values of hospitality in its 24/7 support of restaurant partners in more than 65 countries, Lavu helps businesses grow with solutions built for restaurants by restaurant people. Headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Lavu was the first iPad point of sale in the Apple App Store and continues to offer the latest in restaurant features and functionalities. Learn more at Lavu.com.

About Parafin

Parafin is full-stack embedded financial infrastructure that serves small businesses better, faster, and cheaper. Parafin works with the platforms that small businesses already use — such as marketplaces, payment processors, and software providers — to help small businesses bridge their cash flow needs, invest in their growth, and run their business. Parafin was founded in 2020 by Sahill Poddar, Ralph Furman, and Vineet Goel, three of the earliest employees at Robinhood. Together, they served as the head of machine learning, first data scientist, and head of risk and fraud, respectively.