LeaseQ announced instant financing for micro-ticket equipment purchases of $15,000 or less. After being approved for an equipment lease or loan, LeaseQ customers can now opt for instant financing through participating lenders on the platform.

LeaseQ is successfully piloting the new instant financing program with a handful of dealers in the food & beverage and fitness verticals, with plans to expand the solution to all micro-ticket deals in the final quarter of 2018. Instant financing is part of LeaseQ’s effort to deliver one-hour funding through a streamlined and automated funding process, with goals of automating all small-ticket transactions under $250,000.

“We predict that instant approval for micro-ticket equipment financing and one-hour funding will become the de facto standard for all credit classes in the next 12 months,” said Vernon Tirey, co-founder and CEO of LeaseQ. “We’ve hand-selected a few lenders to help us bring this solution to market. Each one brings equipment finance expertise, and they’ve made development fast and easy at every step.”

Equipment finance is a $1 trillion sector with steady growth ahead. LeaseQ and its lender and vendor partners are well-positioned to capture hundreds of millions of dollars in this market by introducing automated underwriting, quoting and financing. The company recently cemented a partnership with nationwide foodservice dealer network, SEFA, and announced availability of its features on the popular AutoQuotes platform.

LeaseQ vendors Restaurant Appliance Depot; Atlanta Fixture & Sales, a Division of Edward Don & Company; AIMCO Equipment; and Perform Better are among the first to offer instant financing for their customers.

“Instant financing is a huge advantage in this industry where most banks are still handling approvals and quotes by snail mail. If I can offer an approved payment on the spot, I have a 50-60 percent better chance of closing that customer. LeaseQ is the Dealertrack of the equipment finance industry, and their platform helps us move faster,” said Matthew Prager, president of Restaurant Appliance Depot.

LeaseQ is seeking additional lenders to bring instant financing to market.