Kriya vs Bibby Financial Services: Business Finance Comparison



Kriya, a UK B2B payments and working capital platform now owned by Allica Bank, provides digital invoice finance and embedded PayLater solutions that help businesses turn unpaid invoices and business purchases into working capital, as described on its main site, its invoice finance page and its B2B Buy Now Pay Later page. Bibby Financial Services, which presents itself on its UK website as the country’s leading independent invoice finance specialist, offers a broader suite of receivables and asset based funding products including invoice discounting, factoring and asset finance, through product pages such as invoice finance, invoice discounting and asset finance solutions.
This guide compares Kriya and Bibby Financial Services across products, structure, practical costs, service features and fit for different kinds of UK business. The core question is whether a digital, selective invoice finance platform is a better match than a more traditional full-service receivables and asset based lender.
1. Products and terms at a glance
Kriya
Kriya is positioned as a B2B payments and working capital platform, rather than a traditional relationship-led invoice finance provider. Its public material centres on three main themes: invoice finance, PayLater at checkout and broader B2B payments infrastructure.
- Selective invoice finance: Kriya’s invoice finance page presents a selective model where businesses upload individual invoices for funding rather than committing their full ledger.
- Confidential structure: Kriya describes the facility as confidential, with customer payment flows designed to feel normal to the end buyer.
- B2B PayLater: Its PayLater offering allows merchants to offer terms such as 30, 45 or 60 days while being paid upfront.
- Platform-led support: Kriya’s support, complaints and service structure is organised digitally through Get Support and Feedback.
Kriya is now owned by Allica Bank, which confirms on its overview page that Kriya is fully owned by the bank and has advanced more than £4 billion in lending. That gives it a different institutional profile than the older MarketInvoice brand many people still remember.
Although Kriya does not publish a single official eligibility table, the supplied material suggests it is mainly relevant for B2B limited companies and LLPs that invoice other businesses on credit terms and have enough trading history and recurring invoice flow to support selective finance.
Bibby Financial Services
Bibby Financial Services positions itself as a broader and more traditional business funder. Its invoice finance pages, PDF guides and wider funding menu suggest a more relationship-led proposition with support for ongoing facilities rather than selective one-off usage.
- Invoice finance: Bibby offers invoice factoring and invoice discounting through its invoice finance products page.
- Factoring and discounting split: Bibby’s invoice finance guide explains the difference between disclosed factoring and confidential discounting.
- Asset finance: Bibby also offers asset finance solutions, including leasing and hire purchase style funding.
- Trade finance and related products: Its broader range also includes trade and export finance, which makes the product set wider than Kriya’s public offering.
Bibby’s public material makes it look more like a full-service funding partner for SMEs that want an ongoing facility and the option to add other products over time.
High-level comparison
The clearest overlap between Kriya and Bibby sits in invoice finance. The clearest difference is how they present it.
- Kriya is more technology-led, selective and invoice-by-invoice in tone.
- Bibby is more traditional, relationship-led and whole-ledger in tone.
- Kriya pairs invoice finance with embedded B2B payments and checkout credit.
- Bibby pairs receivables funding with broader asset and trade finance options.
2. Costs and repayments in practice
Neither lender publishes a full live tariff of rates or fees for all users. In both cases, the cost depends on business profile, debtor quality, usage pattern and structure.
How fees are typically structured
Kriya
Kriya’s invoice finance material talks about transparent pricing, but it does not publish a universal standard tariff on the product page. It states that businesses can receive up to 90% of invoice value upfront and that the remainder is released after payment, less fees. The structure is therefore best understood as a per-invoice usage model where fees are linked to selected funding activity.
That kind of structure can work well for businesses that only want to fund certain invoices or certain buyers, but it can become expensive if used heavily across a large volume of invoices for long periods.
Bibby Financial Services
Bibby’s materials describe a more traditional invoice finance structure. The funder advances a percentage of eligible invoices, then returns the remaining balance after payment, less service and discount fees. Its public guides explain the structure clearly, but they do not give a universal fee table. For asset finance, Bibby’s asset finance guide follows the same pattern: structure is explained, but pricing remains tailored.
For many businesses, Bibby’s model may look better value on a per-pound-funded basis if the company plans to finance a large share of its debtor book over a longer period. The trade-off is that the facility is usually less selective and more operationally involved.
Illustrative comparison table
Worked example 1, single £100,000 invoice
This example is illustrative only and does not represent a quote from either lender.
- Invoice value: £100,000
- Advance rate: 90% for Kriya and 85% for Bibby
- Funding period: 60 days
- Illustrative fee: 2% of invoice value for both lenders
Under these assumptions, Kriya advances £90,000 and Bibby advances £85,000. If the fee were 2%, the total fee would be £2,000 in each example. When the debtor pays, the remaining reserve would be released minus the fee. Kriya would release £8,000 after fees from its £10,000 reserve, while Bibby would release £13,000 after fees from its £15,000 reserve.
The key commercial difference is not just the fee in this simple example. It is also the structure. With Kriya, the business may choose to fund only this invoice. With Bibby, the business is more likely to be using a broader ledger-based facility.
Worked example 2, ongoing facility over 12 months
This example is also illustrative only.
- Annual eligible B2B turnover: £3 million
- Average debtor days: 60
- Average advance rate: 85%
- Kriya used selectively on £1.5 million of invoices at an illustrative 2% fee
- Bibby used across £2.4 million of invoices at an illustrative 1.5% fee
That produces annual example fees of £30,000 for Kriya and £36,000 for Bibby. In absolute terms Bibby costs more in this example because more invoices are funded. But the effective fee rate on total funded volume is lower in the example. That is the trade-off many businesses need to examine carefully: flexibility versus broader volume economics.
In real life, both providers may also apply additional fees such as minimum monthly charges, audit fees, arrangement fees or service fees. That is why a live quote and total cost comparison matter more than one headline percentage.
3. Speed and service
Onboarding and decision speed
Neither lender publishes a universal guaranteed turnaround time across all cases.
Kriya’s onboarding appears more digital and automated. Its invoice finance process is designed around uploading invoices, checking buyers and approving invoices before funding. Third-party and review material in the supplied text suggests many users view Kriya as fast and straightforward, though speed can slow down when the case is more complex.
Bibby also promotes quick access to cash from unpaid invoices, but its tone is less about instant online processing and more about ongoing funding support. In practice, this may make it feel more hands-on and less self-serve.
Ongoing relationship and support
Kriya directs users primarily through digital support routes, including Get Support and Feedback. This makes it feel more centralised and technology-led.
Bibby’s Service Promise and broader public material put more visible emphasis on relationship management, responsiveness and local support. For some businesses, especially those wanting factoring and credit control assistance, that may be a major advantage.
Technology and integrations
Kriya has a clear edge on embedded B2B payments and integrations. Its PayLater material and the supplied reference to its Stripe partnership show that it is built for businesses that want credit embedded in digital buyer journeys.
Bibby’s public material is much less integration-led. It appears more focused on facility structure, credit control support and broader funding range than on checkout-level payments infrastructure.
4. Who each lender suits
When Kriya may be a better fit
- Digital-first SMEs selling to other businesses on terms.
- B2B ecommerce or omnichannel merchants that want PayLater at checkout.
- Businesses that want to fund selected invoices rather than commit their whole ledger.
- Firms comfortable with digital self-service and centralised support.
- Businesses with a concentrated buyer base where selective funding can materially improve working capital.
Kriya appears particularly relevant where flexibility and digital integration matter more than hands-on collections support or product breadth.
When Bibby Financial Services may be a better fit
- Businesses wanting a full-ledger invoice finance facility.
- Firms that value lender-managed credit control through disclosed factoring.
- Companies that may also need trade finance or asset finance from the same provider.
- SMEs that prefer relationship management and a broader funding relationship.
- Businesses with more traditional operating models where an ongoing working capital line matters more than digital platform features.
Bibby appears more suitable where the business wants funding breadth and relationship support, even if the onboarding is less lightweight than a selective online platform.
5. How to apply
Applying to Kriya
Kriya directs applicants through a digital enquiry and onboarding process. Based on the supplied material, a typical journey is likely to involve:
- starting from the invoice finance or PayLater product pages
- submitting business details and trading information
- providing invoice and debtor information for underwriting
- completing portal-based onboarding if approved
Kriya’s public material suggests a lighter-touch, technology-led path, though exact onboarding time and document requirements vary.
Applying to Bibby Financial Services
Bibby encourages businesses to contact it directly via website forms, phone or introducers. Based on the supplied material, a typical journey is likely to involve:
- initial contact through invoice finance or asset finance enquiry routes
- a suitability discussion covering sector, debtor profile and existing credit control processes
- submission of financial statements, debtor listings and supporting documents
- issue of facility terms, advance rates and legal documentation if approved
Because Bibby offers broader and more traditional facilities, the process may be more detailed than Kriya’s, especially if the business wants a large or multi-product facility.
6. Final verdict
Kriya and Bibby Financial Services operate in overlapping but clearly different parts of the business finance market.
Choose Kriya if:
- you want selective and confidential invoice finance without tying in the whole ledger
- you value digital self-service and fast platform-led processes
- your business sells B2B online and may benefit from embedded PayLater at checkout
- you are comfortable that flexibility may come with a different pricing profile than a broader ledger facility
Choose Bibby Financial Services if:
- you want an ongoing full-ledger invoice discounting or factoring facility
- you value hands-on relationship management and optional credit control support
- you may also need trade finance or asset finance from the same provider
- you are happy with a more involved onboarding process in return for broader funding options
The real decision is less about which lender is universally cheaper and more about which structure fits your working capital pattern, operating model and service preference. Kriya is more naturally aligned to selective and embedded use cases. Bibby is more naturally aligned to ongoing, relationship-led receivables and asset-backed funding.
7. Sources
- Kriya main site
- Kriya invoice finance page
- Kriya B2B Buy Now Pay Later
- Kriya embedded PayLater page
- Kriya invoice finance explainer
- Kriya 2024 reflections / 2025 visions
- Kriya terms and conditions
- Kriya feedback page
- Kriya support page
- Kriya enterprise B2B payments solutions
- Allica Bank Kriya overview
- ExpertSure Kriya review
- Capalona Kriya lender profile
- Finder Kriya review
- Trustpilot Kriya reviews
- Bibby Financial Services main site
- Bibby invoice finance overview
- Bibby invoice finance products
- Bibby invoice discounting page
- Bibby asset finance solutions
- Bibby invoice finance guide
- Bibby asset finance guide
- Bibby qualification article
- Bibby invoice finance company explainer
- Bibby service promise
- Bibby contact page
- Bibby Line Group overview
- Trustpilot Bibby reviews
- Capitalise invoice finance comparison
- Merchant Savvy invoice finance comparison
- Fintech Global Kriya article
- Finextra Kriya Stripe article
- Funding Agent Kriya review
- Funding Agent Bibby review
- Funding Agent invoice finance page
- Funding Agent asset finance page
- Funding Agent asset finance calculator
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