PongoPay is a payment solution for SMEs in the construction industry. as many as 50,000 small-scale enterprises are forced out of business each year across the UK because of late payments. This is particularly common in the construction sector.
The PongoPay app protects Tradespeople from late payments and non payments. Construction companies can generate e-contracts, take payments, carry out multimedia communication and dispute mediation via the app.
The PongoPay app also brings much needed professionalism and trust to the payments process in the construction sector, improving the experience for both Tradespeople and people paying for building works.
PongoPay was created by Jonathan McFarlane after his brother, who owns a construction company, pointed out how prevalent the problem of late payments was for businesses in the industry. Whilst the idea for PongoPay app was conceived back in 2014, recent developments in FinTech and a shift in attitude towards technology in the construction sector have only now made development feasible.
PongoPay has now built a team with backgrounds in finance, construction, and sales. Knowledge gaps in software development and regulated activity were bridged by developing strong working partnerships with key external organisations. Many of these activities are gradually being brought in house and PongoPay is also in the process of bringing in new personnel to strengthen the skills of it’s board of directors.
The project has been privately financed to date. Work started on the App in May 2019 and the product was launched in app stores at the beginning of September 2020. The company has a team of 5 employees and a sales and marketing campaign is now underway. The first users were on-boarded immediately following launch and a strong core user base is already in the process of being established. The company aims to scale as quickly as possible and is planning to commence its first round of funding which will support the goal of becoming an industry standard in construction payments.
Jonathan McFarlane – Founder and Managing Director
Founder Jonathan McFarlane has owned a number of businesses over the past 10 years. Most notably, Jonathan is the owner of Oran Homecare Ltd.; a tech-forward social care company with over 100 employees which he founded in 2012. He is passionate about building teams of experienced individuals in industries and working with them to apply innovative technological solutions in order to advance business practices in those sectors.
Matthew McFarlane – Director and Product Consultant
Matthew McFarlane is the owner of McFarlane Builders & Joiners. Matthew brings a wealth of construction knowledge to the organization as well as large networks of people within the construction industry which he has built up over time.
Lisa Chan – Business Manager
Lisa has worked in a number of business development and finance roles over the years. She holds a BSc in Accounting and Finance and has most recently served as head of finance for Oran Homecare Ltd.; a position which she held for the last 3 years before joining the PongoPay team.
Adam Doig – Head of Sales
Adam has served in sales management positions for various organisations throughout his career. A significant part of his experience has been in selling payment terminals to retail outlets; a role which has allowed him to develop a highly relevant set of skills in order to manage sales for PongoPay.
