US fintech company FastPay has partnered with global insurer AIG to launch a new receivables securitisation programme with a first tranche of US$80mn.

The facility will offer capital to the media and technology sector and enable firms to access working capital backed by their trade accounts receivable.

AIG will provide senior funding, specialist trade finance insurance, and back-up servicing, and additional funding will be provided by an investment vehicle managed by asset management company Cairn Capital.

“Digital media companies continue to innovate and evolve technologies to increase ROI for their customers,” says Secil Baysal, president and COO of FastPay. “This requires substantial investment and access to multiple capital sources to stay competitive.”

FastPay is the only working capital solution designed for the media industry and aims to reduce friction and unlock capital for buyers and sellers across the media and technology landscape.

“Companies throughout the advertising industry are plagued by capital providers that penalise them for having slow-paying customers, even when those customers are marquee brand names,” adds Maytal Shainberg, senior vice-president of business development and origination at FastPay.

Additionally, a recent survey indicates that North American suppliers are facing a period of poor payment practices, which is prompting a change in the way they receive and request payment.

Most US firms (55%) do not expect payment practices of B2B customers to change much over the coming months, while one-third expect an increase in late payments. Only 12% anticipate an improvement.

According the survey, undertaken by Atradius, in the US, the share of overdue invoices is highest in the metals sector at 40.4% of the total value of B2B invoices. The ICT/electronics sector follows at 33%, and the construction industry sits in third place (32%). In Canada, the ICT/electronics sector takes the top spot (34.4%) for overdue invoices and in Mexico, the risk of late payment is highest in construction (35%).

Since its inception in 2009, FastPay has secured the movement of more than US$6bn in capital, providing access to hundreds of millions of dollars in capital from partners including Citibank and Wells Fargo.