How Lean Technologies Saved 70+ Finance Hours & Cuts DSO by 30%

About Lean Technologies

Lean Technologies operates as an Open Banking Platform serving Banks and Fintechs across MENA, regulated by Abu Dhabi Global Market and Saudi Central Bank. Their API infrastructure facilitates secure financial data access and payment initiation, supported by a billing model combining monthly subscriptions and transaction fees. In 2022, Lean Technologies secured $33 million in Series A funding led by Sequoia Capital.

Manual follow-ups were slowing down Lean Technology's productivity

Lean Technologies relied on Wafeq for initial invoice issuance but managed follow-ups manually. With over 100 clients, each requiring frequent follow-ups, the manual process led to delays and complexities:

• Lack of direct payment links in follow-up emails

• Managing invoice collections across UAE and KSA posed logistical challenges

• Inability of the ERP system to customize follow-ups for individual customers

• No calculation of late payment fees and manual reconciliation processes

With a team of 3 individuals, manual accounts receivable (AR) processes became time-consuming, lacking customized follow-ups, and resulting in increased Days Sales Outstanding (DSO). These inefficiencies, coupled with a lack of transparency, caused the team to lose focus on prioritized tasks. As the business grew, these problems became more serious, showing the need for a more automated and flexible solution.

OCTA meets Lean Technologies' unique AR needs

After a thorough internal assessment, Lean Technologies concluded with absolute confidence that OCTA perfectly met their specific needs.

• Fully customizable automated workflows, including Arabic follow-ups: The ability to create fully customizable automated workflows, including Arabic follow-ups, has been a game changer for Lean Technologies. "OCTA's automation has saved us significant time by handling routine follow-ups," says Farah. "We can tailor our communication to each customer segment, ensuring a personalized and effective approach,” she adds.
• In-built support for late fees: OCTA's support for automatic late fee applications has simplified what was once a manual and time consuming process. Setting up late payment fees now takes just a couple of clicks and ensures that late fees are consistently and accurately applied, improving outstanding from overdue invoices.
• A/R analytics and customer scoring: With OCTA's advanced A/R analytics and customer scoring, Lean Technologies gained deep insights into their accounts receivable health. "We can now prioritize our collection efforts based on customer payment behavior and invoice amounts," explains Nabil. This data-driven approach has enabled them to focus on right accounts first, optimizing their cash flow impact.
• Multi-entity support: OCTA's multi-entity capabilities have enabled Lean Technologies to seamlessly manage their accounts receivable processes across multiple countries. By unifying and streamlining the handling of invoices for both UAE and KSA operations, Lean Technologies has managed to eliminate the complexity and inefficiency associated with managing separate processes for different country entities.
• Region-specific payment options: OCTA's integration with region-specific payment options like MamoPay for UAE and Tap Payments for KSA has made it easier for Lean Technologies to cater to local customer preferences. Offering flexible payment methods has enhanced customer satisfaction and expedites the payment process.
• Flexible invoice financing with multiple players to choose from: OCTA's invoice financing option provides peace of mind by allowing you to access funds directly within 24 hours, ensuring your cash flow remains stable and secure. In case of unpaid invoices at risk of becoming bad debt, Lean Technologies can rely on OCTA's efficient debt recovery services to manage the process.

Wafeq x OCTA: Seamless auto-sync

Integrating Wafeq with OCTA was a straightforward and quick process for Lean Technologies. "The entire integration took just a couple of minutes," says Farah. This rapid setup ensured that the finance team could immediately start benefiting from OCTA's advanced features without any disruption to their workflow.

One of the standout benefits of the Wafeq and OCTA integration is the automatic data synchronization. "Data sync happens automatically every day, meaning no manual intervention is required to keep our accounts receivable data up-to-date," Nabil explains. This seamless auto-sync ensures that all invoice information, payment statuses, and follow-up actions are consistently current across both platforms.

The Result:

Lean Technologies gets paid faster despite reduced workload on the finance team.

• DSO Reduction: 30% reduction in Days Sales Outstanding, leading to improved cash flow.

• Manual Effort Decrease: 70 Over hours saved monthly, allowing the finance team to focus on higher- priority tasks.

• Cost Savings: $2,500 Monthly savings of approximately by reducing manual hours and optimizing cash flow.