Hokodo: B2B Payment Solutions and How They Compare to iwocaPay

Digital trade credit is an increasingly popular way to offer flexible payment terms to your customers without taking on the risk yourself.  However, understanding the difference between trade credit platforms can be trickly, as seemingly small details can have a big impact on the value of the solution to your business.  One popular platform in the UK is Hokodo, which allows B2B sellers to offer B2B Buy Now, Pay Later (B2B BNPL) to their business customers. Hokodo specialise in offering digital versions of traditional payment terms like Net 30 - 90 and enabling digital trade accounts, with e-commerce integrations. 

In this article, we’ll take a look at Hokodo, its products, and how it compares to iwocaPay, so you can choose the right trade credit solution for your business.

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Who is Hokodo?

Hokodo was founded in 2018 and now has operations in London, Paris and Lithuania. Their solution helps B2B sellers offer common credit terms to their buyers instantly at checkout as an all-in-one, bundling several handy services:

• Instant credit decisions: Hokodo handles real-time credit and fraud checks on business buyers.
• Financing: They pay the seller upfront and in full for the sale.
• Risk protection: Hokodo takes on the risk, protecting the seller from non-payment and fraud, backed by major insurers like Lloyd's of London and AIG.
• Collections: They manage the entire collections process, from reminders to dunning.

Hokodo is a regulated financial institution, holding an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) licence in Lithuania to service the EU and authorisation from the FCA in the UK.

The platform is also built to be industry-agnostic and serves a wide range of B2B verticals, such as:

• Food & Beverages
• Agriculture
• Industrial Supplies
• Construction & Building Materials
• Automotive
• Pharmaceuticals

While it is built for e-commerce, Hokodo’s solution can also be used for transactions that happen offline, such as sales made over the phone or in-store, creating a single, unified process for managing trade credit.

What products does Hokodo offer?

Hokodo’s platform is designed to let sellers outsource their entire trade credit process. Here’s how it works for both the seller and the buyer.

For the Seller 

1. Integration: The seller integrates Hokodo’s solution into their sales channels. This can be a direct API integration for a custom-built site or a simple plug-in for e-commerce platforms like Shopify and Adobe Commerce (Magento).
2. Offer terms: The seller can offer a range of flexible payment options to their buyers at checkout, powered by Hokodo.
3. Get paid upfront: When a buyer selects a "Pay Later" option and is approved, Hokodo pays the seller the full invoice amount upfront, minus their fee.
4. Risk removed: The seller is protected from all credit and fraud risk. If the buyer never pays, Hokodo absorbs the loss.
5. Admin streamlined: Hokodo manages the full collections process, including reminders and follow-ups, saving the seller's team significant administrative time.

For the Buyer

1. Simple checkout: The buyer shops on the seller's site as normal. At checkout, they see the option to "Pay Later" with Hokodo alongside standard payment methods.
2. Instant decision: If they choose a credit option, Hokodo runs an instant, "soft" credit check that doesn't affect their credit score.
3. Flexible payment: The buyer receives the goods immediately but can pay for them later according to the terms they selected.

Sellers can choose from a suite of different payment terms to offer their buyers. This includes classic net 30, 60, or 90-day terms, instalment plans, and digital trade accounts for repeat buyers. They also offer a Pay Now option for buyers who don't want or need credit.

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Comparison: Hokodo vs iwocaPay

While Hokodo and iwocaPay both offer B2B BNPL solutions, they have distinct features and areas of focus.

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How are Hokodo and iwocaPay similar in supporting B2B payments?

Both Hokodo and iwocaPay are designed to solve the same core problems in B2B commerce: they make it easier for sellers to offer flexible payment terms at point-of-sale,  improving cash flow and removing credit risk. 

• Core goal: Both platforms facilitate digital B2B payments, eliminate credit risk for the seller, and improve business cash flow.
• Risk-free for sellers: Both iwocaPay and Hokodo pay the seller upfront and in full. They both take on the underwriting, credit and fraud risk, so the seller is always paid. 
• Buyer flexibility: Both offer flexible "Pay Later" options to business buyers, allowing them to manage their own cash flow and make larger purchases.
• Instant payment functionality: Both include an instant payment  option. iwocaPay's "Pay Now" is a free, instant bank-to-bank transfer, allowing sellers to consolidate all their payment options via an instant, free payment option. 
• Modern integrations: Both are integratable solutions with simple plugins for major e-commerce platforms like Shopify , Magento 2 (Adobe Commerce) , and WooCommerce.

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Key differences: Hokodo vs iwocaPay

The primary differences lie in the credit model, the specific terms offered, and the ecosystem integrations.

1. Payment Terms Offered

Hokodo offers deferred payment terms up to 90 days or instalment plans of up to 5 monthly payments.

iwocaPay offers much longer payment periods. Buyers can choose to spread the cost over 1, 3 or 12 months, providing greater flexibility for larger purchases.

2. Fee structure

iwocaPay provides additional flexibility for the seller to control the fees. A seller can choose to take all payments (including Pay Later) for free, where the buyer pays a small amount of interest on the 3 or 12-month plan.

Or, they can stand out from the competition by offering interest-free terms to their buyers, where the seller pays a small fee. 

3. Platform costs & setup

Hokodo’s fixed-fee applies whether you are currently using the solution or not, and cancelling requires a 3-month notice period, during which you’ll keep paying.

iwocaPay is a ‘pay-as-you-go’ model, meaning there’s no notice period and no fixed monthly or integration fees – and no cost if you’re not using the platform. 

4. Ecosystem integrations

Hokodo focuses its integrations primarily on e-commerce platforms and API-first, custom builds for marketplaces.

iwocaPay offers e-commerce plugins, but additionally integrates directly with accounting software like Xero, QuickBooks, and Quickfile. This allows sellers to add iwocaPay links directly to their invoices

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Choosing the right digital trade credit solution for your business

Both Hokodo and iwocaPay are popular products that can help de-risk and grow your B2B sales: they let you offer flexible payment terms to your customers while you get paid instantly and in full. The credit risk and admin are removed from your business, so you can focus on winning new customers. 

The best choice for your business depends on your specific needs. Hokodo offers a toolkit for replicating traditional net terms (like 30 or 60 days) and short instalments, with fixed-fees you can factor into your business model. 

In contrast, iwocaPay is a more flexible option, giving you granular control over your terms, costs and margins, so you can use B2B BNPL as a strategic tool to manage your customer relationships and revenue. 

Key benefits of iwocaPay include: 

• Costs you control: You can offer iwocaPay completely free for you, where your buyer pays a small amount of interest on their plan. Or, you can stand out from the competition by choosing to absorb the fee, offering your buyers interest-free terms. You can apply this to all your customers, or just a few – and if you’re not using iwocaPay at that moment, you don’t pay anything.
• Longer payment terms: Give your buyers more purchasing power by letting them spread the cost over up-to 12 months.
• Low risk: You can get started with iwocaPay with no fixed fees, integration costs or notice period to cancel – you only pay when you make a sale and you choose to take on the fee. And if you pass on your costs to your customers, it’s totally free. 
• Higher spending limit: If your customer is approved, they get a single, reusable credit line they can use for all their purchases with you, up to £30,000.
• Integrate where you work: iwocaPay works everywhere you do. Add it to your e-commerce checkout (Shopify, Magento 2, Woo) , or add a payment link directly to your invoices from Xero, QuickBooks, and Quickfile. You can also use a simple pay link or QR code for in-person sales.
• A trusted name: iwocaPay is part of iwoca, a leading UK digital finance provider, with over 14 years experience lending to over 100,000 businesses. Our deep UK expertise means we can deliver reliable, in-depth credit analysis quickly, so you can provide a seamless buying experience. 

If your business is looking for a simple and flexible way to increase sales, get paid instantly, and give your SME customers real purchasing power, iwocaPay is built for you.

Book a demo today to see how you can get set up quickly and easily.