Kabbage Inc. announced the public release of its Kabbage Payments program, which allows its small business customers to make an immediate payment using the simplicity of a text message from a smartphone. 

Kabbage said that two thirds of its more than 200,000 customers sometimes wait up to 90 days to get paid and this new payments service is designed to automate the invoicing process. The company recently completed a successful beta program and Kabbage Payments is the first of several new products designed to help these businesses improve cash flow. 

Kabbage officials said that the company has helped thousands of businesses collect more than $8 billion in invoices since 2011.

"A primary reason our customers have accessed more than $8 billion of funding through Kabbage is to cover cost while waiting to get paid," Nan Siler, head of payments strategy and operations, told Mobile Payments Today via email. "More than two thirds of our customers rely on invoice payments but may wait as long as 90 days to receive payment."

Siler said during the beta period Kabbage onboarded hundreds of small businesses that were able to process payments much faster through the service. The service operates by allowing the company to create a unique URL that can be sent through text, web or email with an invoice link. 

Payments can be processed in as little as 24 hours. 

Cover image: Kabbage.