Facebook to invest $100 million to help small businesses grow

Facebook announced today that it is investing $100 million in an initiative to support small businesses owned by women and minorities by purchasing their unpaid invoices .

By purchasing unpaid invoices, Facebook is able to get money into the hands of small businesses through its Invoice Fast Track Program , which would otherwise have to wait weeks or even months to get paid by their customers.

The program is the latest effort by Facebook to build long-term relationships and foster loyalty with small businesses , many of which rely on the social networking platform to target ads to people who might be interested in their services.

Rich Rao , Facebook 's vice president of related projects , said the company first tried the program in 2020 after hearing that many suppliers were struggling due to the epidemic .

The program has proven so successful that Facebook is now significantly expanding it, investing $100 million to buy unpaid invoices , which Rao estimates will support about 30,000 small businesses.

Businesses can submit unpaid invoices of $1,000 or more . If approved , Facebook will purchase the invoices from the small business and pay them within a few days . Then, the small business's customers pay Facebook for the unpaid invoices according to the terms agreed with the small business .

For Facebook, whose revenue in 2020 was nearly $86 billion, its cash turnover is not as overly dependent on customer money as small businesses, and it will be more tolerant in waiting for customers to pay . Facebook's move undoubtedly solves the urgent needs of many small businesses.

It is reported that American businesses owned by women and minorities , as well as suppliers serving certain groups, are eligible to apply for support from the program . This includes the Minority Supplier Development Council, the Women's Business Enterprise Association , the Veterans Business Development Council , organizations for people with disabilities, and the American Pan-Asian Chamber of Commerce . In addition, Facebook will continue to expand its support to provide service support to more and more companies.

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