Fintech company The Glue, and VGD, an accounting firm, are together setting up TOCO, a unique software platform where SME’s and freelancers can store, process, and monitor their financial administration and share it with their accountant and their bank.
A central location for financial administration and communication
The SME’s can open their digital archive to other parties, such as their accountant and bank, with a tailored access (ad hoc access, limited rights, limited supervision and so forth). “But TOCO is far more than a virtual shoebox where documents can be stored and consulted,” says Charlotte Pille, Accountancy Partner at VGD. Incoming invoices and expenses can be paid from TOCO (through seamless integration with BilltoBox from UnifiedPost), and sales invoices can be sent from the platform.
Facebook timeline
“But our first and foremost aim is to set up a user-friendly means of communication between the different users,” Charlotte continues. “via an information feed – you can compare it to a Facebook timeline – entrepreneurs and accountants get to see their most recent actions and to do’s of the day, and alerts can pop up.”
Financial situation at a glance
Philippe Kimpe, CIO of VGD, adds “that the integration of service providers such as Silverfin and Bright Analytics moreover makes it possible to consult the financial situation of the company in real time. “Less time spent on accounting and administration will mean that there will be more room for advice and financial planning,” Philippe says.
PSD2 raised to a higher level
Thanks to PSD2, it will be possible to make payments directly from TOCO. “But we are taking it further than that,” says Stefan Dierckx, CEO of The Glue. Entrepreneurs will be able to share other documents with their bank as well. “That avoids an enormous amount of fuss. An application for a loan is a good example. Both the company and the bank have to send a whole set of documents back and forth. With TOCO, that is now a thing of the past.” With the appropriate approval, the bank can consult the documents on the platform, and comment as and where necessary. Subject to prior consent, banks will also gain insight into the financial situation of their customers, so as to be able to give advice to measure. “The additional features are an innovative application of PSD2 in a B2B context,” Stefan Dierckx adds.
The platform avoids workloads at peak periods
Because documents can be uploaded in TOCO as soon as they come in, both the entrepreneur and the accountant avoid the traditional rush around for example VAT and tax returns. In time it will moreover be possible for an SME to exchange information via TOCO with other parties such as the government, or social secretariats (payroll administration, contract overviews, etc.).
Available in the spring of 2019
An early, limited version of TOCO is currently running for the customers of VDG. In the coming months, the commercial version will be built on the high-performing technology of The Glue. The new platform will be widely available in the spring of 2019.
