The Gold Award for Best Working Capital Programme goes to Hepsiburada for an outstanding merchant financing initiative that swept the floor at this year’s awards. The Turkish e-commerce leader also won the Best Integrated Working Capital Award and commendations for Best Use of Supply Chain Finance and Best Use of Technology in a Working Capital Project.
Judges praised the technical sophistication, supplier-centric design and win-win impact of the programme, which gives Hepsiburada merchants access to competitively priced funding as early as the same day that they make a sale. Many have benefited so much from this that they have reduced their selling prices on the site, helping drive up revenues for Hepsiburada.
The challenge
Few platforms dominate their home markets as firmly as Hepsiburada. With a market share in Turkey that is three times bigger than Amazon’s, the Nasdaq-listed company connects over 100,000 mostly SME merchants with 12 million consumers, facilitating more 100,000 transactions every day.
But its growth is heavily dependent on the financial strength of its merchants, which can struggle to restock and continue selling through Hepsiburada if delayed payments limit their liquidity.
So Hepsiburada set out to build a financing model that would give merchants access to affordable working capital the moment they need it – without hidden costs, piles of paperwork or the obligation to open new bank accounts.
Fast and affordable
Through a partnership with Turkish fintech Faturalab, which specialises in digital supply chain finance (SCF) systems, Hepsiburada built an end-to-end automated merchant financing platform that allows sellers to receive payment on the same day they issue an invoice. This is up to a month earlier than they would have otherwise.
To ensure merchants receive the best funding rate, the programme uses a multi-bank auction model, which brings together four participating banks to compete in real time for each financing request.
If none of the banks tables a quote for a merchant, Hepsiburada can offer its own dynamic discounting solution at similar rates, helping ensure no merchant is left without access to funds. This helps build merchants’ confidence in the programme and encourages participation.
Flexible, easy to use and secure
The programme – which Hepsiburada designed based on merchant feedback – also scored highly on ease of use. The system is fully integrated into Hepsiburada’s supplier portal, which merchants also use to manage their orders and invoices. With just one login, they can view financing options, compare offers and – for flexibility – decide to cash in all or part of their receivables.
Funds are then transferred directly into the merchant’s chosen bank account – meaning no extra forms, no new bank relationships, and no hidden costs.
The system’s architecture also adds an extra layer of security. All invoices are stored electronically in a central registry, eliminating the risk of double discounting or fraud.
Tangible impact
Since launch, the programme has delivered enviable impact, and demonstrated how empowering small businesses can become a powerful growth engine for corporates. More than 6,000 merchants have signed up, and over $1.8 billion of invoices have been uploaded and financed.
With better liquidity, many merchants have cut their prices, attracting more customers to the site. This has helped Hepsiburada achieve double-digit sales growth – at no extra cost and without adding debt to its balance sheet.
Encouraged by these results, the company now plans to double the number of participating banks by early 2026 to support even more merchants.
Inclusive
To Hepsiburada’s credit, the programme is also helping the company merge profitability with purpose, and advance its sustainability goals.
Hepsiburada is now channelling some of the financial benefits it has gained from higher sales into separately offering subsidised dynamic discounting financing for vulnerable groups, including women-led small enterprises and merchants in earthquake-affected regions.
A blueprint for the future
In a sector often defined by razor-thin margins and fierce competition, Hepsiburada’s approach – supplier-first, data-driven and socially conscious – has proven that financial innovation need not come at the expense of inclusivity. By creating a seamless, scalable system that benefits itself, SME merchants, customers and the broader community, Hepsiburada has developed a new model for working capital finance.
“With an innovative merchant financing programme that stands out as much for its inclusivity as its sophistication, Hepsiburada has more than earned its Gold Award and confirmed its status as one of Europe’s most forward-thinking e-commerce players,” said Mike Hewitt, CEO of Working Capital Forum. “This is working capital finance as it should be – fast, transparent, secure and sustainable.”