Smart Money

Rapid deployment, smooth integration and great support from Acora’s knowledgeable people made it easy for Leumi ABL to get its new finance package up and running.

Leumi ABL provides asset-based lending (ABL) to around 150 clients, mainly based in the UK, across a wide range of sectors, particularly manufacturing. Through invoice discounting and other secured lendings, it gives them the cash flow they need to support day-to-day operations; typical loan amounts are £10-40 million.

In early 2021, the company faced a challenging decision regarding its business-critical finance package.

“The supplier wanted us to commit to a new five-year contract, at very short notice. It was a legacy system that wasn’t very user-friendly, and it was going to cost a lot more money. We knew we needed to do something, but there wasn’t much time. Acora was already providing our Office 365 services, so our COO asked if they could help.”

Victoria Bishop, Head of Finance at Leumi ABL

On 25 February, Acora’s own Enterprise Architect, Stuart Allen, arranged a demonstration of Business Central, the Office 365 finance package. Leumi ABL signed up the following week. 

“Stuart’s demonstration was brilliant. He’s very knowledgeable and had some great insights into ways of doing things that made our decision to sign up very easy.”

Victoria Bishop

After a kick-off call on 8th March, training on the new package began just two days later.

“The whole process was incredibly easy. We really liked the product and the fact that Acora was able to deliver such a quick turnaround. Business Central is simple to use; and because it’s a Microsoft product, it’s all integrated and we can use our existing Office 365 profiles.”

Victoria Bishop

Victoria was impressed by the Acora team’s approach to developing the package. Also, a key figure in the process was Acora’s Application Consultant, Andy Thomas.

“We really liked the way they went about it. Rather than just presenting a solution, Acora built the package with us, so it all makes complete sense. Because we understand the possibilities, we can play with it and try new things ourselves, or ask Acora if we need more help; there’s a real sense of ownership. Also, Andy has a finance background, which was massively helpful. His knowledge of both Business Central and the finance world was fantastic; he talked me through the build and gave me a lot of confidence.”

Victoria Bishop

Leumi ABL is now using Business Central to run its general ledger, purchase ledger and expenses claims.

“This is a business-critical system, which was up and running in just a few days. And because we’ve got licenses within our existing Office 365 deal, it’s not overly expensive, and certainly more cost-effective than a bespoke package.”

Victoria Bishop

If you have specific questions or would like to find out more, please contact us.