1 00:00:05.520 --> 00:00:07.230 Sean Murray: Hello, everybody, it's Sean Murray here at 2 00:00:07.230 --> 00:00:11.640 deBanked News. And today I am here with Rafael Rositsan and 3 00:00:11.670 --> 00:00:15.300 Vlad Sherbatov at smarter loans. Thank you for being here, guys. 4 00:00:15.480 --> 00:00:16.800 Vlad: Great to be here, Sean. 5 00:00:17.550 --> 00:00:20.910 Sean Murray: So you both operate a company up in Canada. So I'm 6 00:00:20.910 --> 00:00:22.770 going to ask you plenty of questions about the Canadian 7 00:00:22.770 --> 00:00:25.440 market. Can you tell me a little bit about yourself, and also 8 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:26.700 what Smarter Loans does? 9 00:00:27.140 --> 00:00:29.690 Vlad: Absolutely. My name is Vlad, this is my partner 10 00:00:29.690 --> 00:00:34.040 Raphael. And together, we run smarter loans. smarter loans is 11 00:00:34.040 --> 00:00:37.580 an online website that is visited by Canadians that are 12 00:00:37.580 --> 00:00:41.570 looking for loans and financing of all purposes. It could be a 13 00:00:41.570 --> 00:00:45.230 personal installment loan, it could be business financing, a 14 00:00:45.230 --> 00:00:49.490 mortgage or auto, and other industries. And the way that 15 00:00:49.490 --> 00:00:53.000 we're able to do this is that we aggregate on the website, the 16 00:00:53.000 --> 00:00:55.910 top financial companies and brands, their products and 17 00:00:55.910 --> 00:00:59.480 services that are available in the Canadian market. And we also 18 00:00:59.480 --> 00:01:03.380 invest in educating Canadians about financial matters, how 19 00:01:03.380 --> 00:01:06.620 these different products work, so that we can empower them to 20 00:01:06.680 --> 00:01:11.060 help them make smarter financial decisions. Since we launched in 21 00:01:11.060 --> 00:01:14.360 2016, we've been able to grow Smarter Loans into a household 22 00:01:14.360 --> 00:01:17.840 name here in Canada, both with consumers that are looking to 23 00:01:18.230 --> 00:01:21.830 find financial products online, and also for brands that are 24 00:01:21.830 --> 00:01:24.830 looking to reach an audience and promote their products to 25 00:01:24.830 --> 00:01:25.580 Canadians. 26 00:01:26.430 --> 00:01:29.490 Sean Murray: So it's obviously been an interesting year. And so 27 00:01:29.490 --> 00:01:33.300 I'm curious to get your take on the state of the Canadian 28 00:01:33.300 --> 00:01:35.940 economy, what's happening in Canada right now? 29 00:01:36.980 --> 00:01:39.800 Vlad: Well, overall, I mean, when everything went down in 30 00:01:39.800 --> 00:01:44.840 March, shortly after we, as a country basically went into a 31 00:01:44.840 --> 00:01:48.320 bit of a shutdown as well, businesses have closed down, and 32 00:01:48.320 --> 00:01:51.170 people started to stay at home, the government has issued a 33 00:01:51.170 --> 00:01:54.530 couple of subsidies, multiple subsidies actually, about a 34 00:01:54.530 --> 00:01:58.130 couple of major ones. One is called CERB. And that was 35 00:01:58.130 --> 00:02:01.730 towards just individuals to supplement with additional 36 00:02:01.730 --> 00:02:05.570 income about $2,000 a month, and another one called a CEBA, 37 00:02:05.630 --> 00:02:09.290 C-E-B-A and that one was toward small businesses and business 38 00:02:09.290 --> 00:02:13.520 owners to help them through that time. And that was a $40,000 39 00:02:13.520 --> 00:02:19.250 loan over three years. So those couple of subsidies helped 40 00:02:19.610 --> 00:02:22.610 businesses and people kind of get through the initial couple 41 00:02:22.610 --> 00:02:25.460 of months. And over the past couple of months, the 42 00:02:25.460 --> 00:02:28.820 restrictions have been easing out. So businesses have started 43 00:02:28.820 --> 00:02:32.390 to reopen, not to its full capacity, but at least in some 44 00:02:32.390 --> 00:02:36.470 capacity. And that has brought more people to their jobs as 45 00:02:36.470 --> 00:02:41.840 well. So that has picked some of the economic activity back up. 46 00:02:41.840 --> 00:02:45.530 But of course, we're nowhere near the previous levels. And 47 00:02:45.530 --> 00:02:47.420 there's still a lot of uncertainty here about what's 48 00:02:47.420 --> 00:02:49.940 going to happen in the near term and in the long term. 49 00:02:51.110 --> 00:02:54.950 Sean Murray: Okay, great, excellent. So your company puts 50 00:02:54.950 --> 00:02:59.090 out a regular report like an annual report, and it's called 51 00:02:59.090 --> 00:03:02.480 the state of alternative lending, right. And I'm looking 52 00:03:02.480 --> 00:03:06.680 at the one you put out for 2019. And it looks like it was a real 53 00:03:06.680 --> 00:03:10.160 standout year, in that more Canadians said that they first 54 00:03:10.160 --> 00:03:13.820 applied with a non-bank lender that year than in any previous 55 00:03:13.820 --> 00:03:17.630 year. And I imagine that certain events this year are going to 56 00:03:17.630 --> 00:03:22.640 impact the stats. But what do you think we might see in 2020 57 00:03:22.820 --> 00:03:23.660 regarding that? 58 00:03:25.229 --> 00:03:28.979 Rafael: No, we're definitely seeing a shift towards more 59 00:03:29.309 --> 00:03:33.209 digital products and digital behavior in the financial space 60 00:03:33.209 --> 00:03:36.089 and outside of it as well. So we definitely anticipate an 61 00:03:36.089 --> 00:03:39.899 increase in users, you know, engaging with brands that are 62 00:03:39.899 --> 00:03:43.859 able to offer a digital experience, right, we're seeing 63 00:03:43.859 --> 00:03:45.929 that across a variety of different industries, you know, 64 00:03:45.929 --> 00:03:49.109 whether it's personal loans, the automotive sector, or the 65 00:03:49.109 --> 00:03:52.529 business side of things as well. consumers that are aren't able 66 00:03:52.529 --> 00:03:55.289 to go into a retail environment now are gravitating towards 67 00:03:55.319 --> 00:03:58.859 digital. And that's a trend that we're you know, hoping to see in 68 00:03:58.859 --> 00:04:00.179 2020 as well. 69 00:04:00.660 --> 00:04:03.630 Vlad: And overall, I mean, when you look at COVID, and the 70 00:04:03.630 --> 00:04:06.480 result that it's had on different activities in 71 00:04:06.480 --> 00:04:10.470 different sectors, e-commerce has been on the rise, right. And 72 00:04:10.500 --> 00:04:15.090 not just for everyday household items that maybe we go to Amazon 73 00:04:15.090 --> 00:04:19.170 to buy, but also for financial products. And that behavior 74 00:04:19.170 --> 00:04:22.650 change has, is something that we noticed in our previous studies 75 00:04:22.650 --> 00:04:28.230 in 2019, and even in 2018. But that behavior change has been 76 00:04:28.260 --> 00:04:33.450 given a jolt. So we're expecting that even if there's an economic 77 00:04:33.450 --> 00:04:37.590 slowdown, that this shift in consumer behavior will actually 78 00:04:37.590 --> 00:04:41.910 continue long beyond and we're starting to see that already. 79 00:04:41.910 --> 00:04:45.330 And and one way that we've been impacted is that we've been a 80 00:04:45.330 --> 00:04:48.300 leader in loans in quite some time. But even for our existing 81 00:04:48.300 --> 00:04:51.270 customers, we've started to expand our service offering to 82 00:04:51.270 --> 00:04:55.140 them and starting telling them about additional options for 83 00:04:55.410 --> 00:04:58.350 financial products that they can obtain digitally and whether 84 00:04:58.350 --> 00:05:02.040 that can be everyday banking solutions like checking and 85 00:05:02.040 --> 00:05:06.210 savings accounts, or insurance services or investing, money 86 00:05:06.210 --> 00:05:08.250 transfers, and so on and so forth. 87 00:05:08.550 --> 00:05:10.830 Rafael: And just to Vlad's point, you know, we're seeing 88 00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:14.040 brands sort of become a little bit more digital as well for the 89 00:05:14.040 --> 00:05:16.740 consumer, you know, whether if you're trying to buy a vehicle, 90 00:05:16.740 --> 00:05:19.320 for example, we're now seeing companies are able to offer, you 91 00:05:19.320 --> 00:05:22.320 know, online purchasing and delivery to your home, you know, 92 00:05:22.320 --> 00:05:24.210 so you don't have to go to a dealership in order to obtain a 93 00:05:24.210 --> 00:05:26.760 vehicle. So we're seeing brands adopting as well, and their 94 00:05:26.760 --> 00:05:30.150 product offering more and more so. And you know, that trend 95 00:05:30.150 --> 00:05:30.960 will hopefully continue. 96 00:05:31.950 --> 00:05:34.410 Vlad: I think it'll be interesting to see how different 97 00:05:34.440 --> 00:05:37.650 sectors respond differently. Obviously, the government 98 00:05:37.650 --> 00:05:41.160 subsidies have injected some additional capital into the 99 00:05:41.160 --> 00:05:45.270 marketplace overall, that in the past, used to be covered by 100 00:05:45.300 --> 00:05:49.410 service providers and by different companies. So that has 101 00:05:49.410 --> 00:05:52.140 changed the short term demand for some of the financial 102 00:05:52.140 --> 00:05:56.610 products. But overall, the consensus is, we need to be more 103 00:05:56.610 --> 00:05:59.460 digitally accessible from a financial products point of 104 00:05:59.460 --> 00:06:03.960 view, and customers are craving it right now. You know, even 105 00:06:03.960 --> 00:06:07.980 those that were reluctant to do it in the past, now don't have 106 00:06:07.980 --> 00:06:11.190 as many options. So they're going out of their comfort zone 107 00:06:11.220 --> 00:06:15.240 and are more willing to adopt digital products if they weren't 108 00:06:15.240 --> 00:06:15.960 in the past. 109 00:06:17.490 --> 00:06:19.830 Sean Murray: between you both right there in that explanation, 110 00:06:19.830 --> 00:06:23.100 I heard the term brand come up twice. So I want to ask you 111 00:06:23.100 --> 00:06:25.470 about brands, because I feel like in our previous 112 00:06:25.470 --> 00:06:29.700 conversations, you've raised brands as well. And I think 113 00:06:29.700 --> 00:06:33.090 you've communicated that Generation Z, in particular is 114 00:06:33.090 --> 00:06:36.240 all about personal brand. And I'm wondering, do you think 115 00:06:36.240 --> 00:06:39.450 that's true when it comes to financial products? 116 00:06:39.600 --> 00:06:42.420 Rafael: Absolutely. I think, you know, Brand is very important to 117 00:06:42.420 --> 00:06:45.300 the consumer that they want to make sure that they're, you 118 00:06:45.300 --> 00:06:47.460 know, giving their business to a brand that aligns with their 119 00:06:47.460 --> 00:06:49.860 personal beliefs and values. So I think that's extremely 120 00:06:49.860 --> 00:06:52.890 important. You know, another factor that's also super 121 00:06:52.890 --> 00:06:55.320 important is, you know, the accessibility of your financial 122 00:06:55.320 --> 00:06:59.070 product, right. So even though as a brand you might be in line 123 00:06:59.070 --> 00:07:01.140 with my values, do you have products available and 124 00:07:01.140 --> 00:07:05.010 accessible to me that I can easily experience online? Right, 125 00:07:05.010 --> 00:07:09.780 so outside of sort of being just aligning my values, am I able to 126 00:07:09.780 --> 00:07:12.870 provide a good experience and a service to to a potential 127 00:07:12.870 --> 00:07:13.770 customer of mine? 128 00:07:14.430 --> 00:07:17.280 Sean Murray: What are you seeing from bags? Because it seems like 129 00:07:17.280 --> 00:07:21.660 fintech in Canada is competing against legacy institutions. 130 00:07:21.660 --> 00:07:24.990 They're competing against traditional banking. Are banks, 131 00:07:25.050 --> 00:07:27.930 there doing anything to cultivate their brands? Or are 132 00:07:27.930 --> 00:07:31.110 they just depending on their name brand recognition that 133 00:07:31.110 --> 00:07:33.870 they've always had? Are they doing anything active right now. 134 00:07:34.350 --> 00:07:37.470 Vlad: So it's possible that in the past, they there may have 135 00:07:37.470 --> 00:07:41.310 been a viewpoint that it's a us versus them mentality, or I 136 00:07:41.310 --> 00:07:45.960 should say fintech versus, you know, non fintech. But over the 137 00:07:45.960 --> 00:07:48.540 past couple of years, we've seen really is much more 138 00:07:48.540 --> 00:07:52.470 collaboration than before. And banks are extremely active, I 139 00:07:52.470 --> 00:07:54.930 should actually say, not just banks, but also credit unions 140 00:07:54.960 --> 00:07:58.740 that are established large financial institutions here in 141 00:07:58.740 --> 00:08:02.280 Canada. And they've all been much, much more active over the 142 00:08:02.280 --> 00:08:07.080 past few years. And that comes in several forms. From one side, 143 00:08:07.110 --> 00:08:10.530 they are innovating their own products to make them more 144 00:08:11.100 --> 00:08:15.330 digitally accessible. They are also partnering with different 145 00:08:15.330 --> 00:08:20.610 fintech companies, they are launching sub-brands to create a 146 00:08:20.610 --> 00:08:25.380 more evolved digitally friendly, maybe younger generation 147 00:08:25.380 --> 00:08:29.220 friendly brands and reach those consumers as well. So there's 148 00:08:29.220 --> 00:08:33.660 been Yes, they do have legacy systems that can be a barrier 149 00:08:33.660 --> 00:08:37.650 sometimes to that evolution. But they've been extremely active, 150 00:08:37.650 --> 00:08:40.470 they're fully aware of what's happening in the marketplace. 151 00:08:40.860 --> 00:08:45.120 And I think there isn't as much hostility now as there is a 152 00:08:45.120 --> 00:08:49.470 recognition of opportunity and the fact that there is a greater 153 00:08:49.530 --> 00:08:52.590 opportunity if there's collaboration happening, and 154 00:08:52.590 --> 00:08:54.060 we've seen a lot more of that recently. 155 00:08:54.600 --> 00:08:57.150 Rafael: And to add to Vlad's point, you know, we're on the 156 00:08:57.150 --> 00:08:59.460 ground here in Canada. So you know, when we attend certain 157 00:08:59.460 --> 00:09:01.680 events, we definitely see representatives from the banks, 158 00:09:01.710 --> 00:09:04.230 they're, you know, they're interested in the fintech 159 00:09:04.230 --> 00:09:07.140 industry and how it's been growing and developing, it seems 160 00:09:07.140 --> 00:09:10.890 like the bankers right now have specific job titles for people 161 00:09:10.890 --> 00:09:13.590 that are, you know, in charge of digital roles. So there is new 162 00:09:13.590 --> 00:09:17.190 roles being sort of offered there for, you know, leaders and 163 00:09:17.190 --> 00:09:19.230 digital transformation as well. So they're definitely very 164 00:09:19.230 --> 00:09:21.540 active. And in terms of, you know, us talking to the banks 165 00:09:21.540 --> 00:09:24.480 and credit unions has become a lot easier in the last few years 166 00:09:24.480 --> 00:09:27.630 as well. You know, they have an appetite to explore our platform 167 00:09:27.630 --> 00:09:30.240 and potentially reach our users as well. So they've been very 168 00:09:30.240 --> 00:09:32.880 forthcoming and offering their products on platforms such as 169 00:09:32.880 --> 00:09:34.620 smartphones and others as well. 170 00:09:35.170 --> 00:09:37.390 Vlad: Exactly. And I mean, also keep in mind that the banking 171 00:09:37.390 --> 00:09:39.670 system in Canada is very different from the United 172 00:09:39.670 --> 00:09:44.470 States. We have a few major major banks and financial 173 00:09:44.470 --> 00:09:49.630 institutions that cover a huge market share. So as consumers, 174 00:09:49.660 --> 00:09:53.410 we are not sort of anticipating that they're going to be going 175 00:09:53.410 --> 00:09:56.350 away anytime soon, or anywhere else. And I think there's 176 00:09:56.350 --> 00:09:59.380 recognition of that both from not just from the banks, but 177 00:09:59.380 --> 00:10:02.530 also the fintechs players and the fintech players that even 178 00:10:02.530 --> 00:10:04.390 they have products that are competing with some of the 179 00:10:04.390 --> 00:10:07.510 banking products, they're typically very open to 180 00:10:07.510 --> 00:10:09.880 collaborations and exploring opportunities that they can all 181 00:10:09.880 --> 00:10:10.570 work together. 182 00:10:12.460 --> 00:10:16.090 Sean Murray: So Raf, you mentioned before going to 183 00:10:16.120 --> 00:10:20.530 events. And one thing I've liked about the Canadian market is 184 00:10:20.530 --> 00:10:23.860 that there are a lot of fintech events that that we were going 185 00:10:23.860 --> 00:10:28.030 to many of them last year, we had one. But they've been 186 00:10:28.090 --> 00:10:30.940 canceled, postponed, gone virtual, you know, it makes 187 00:10:30.940 --> 00:10:34.420 sense. But what's the state of the fintech industry now that 188 00:10:34.420 --> 00:10:37.330 those have kind of, you know, gone to the background, the 189 00:10:37.330 --> 00:10:41.680 event aspect of it, are people working from home? It looks like 190 00:10:41.680 --> 00:10:44.740 you're, you're in the office right now. But how, you know, 191 00:10:44.740 --> 00:10:47.410 how is everyone operating in the fintech industry right now? 192 00:10:48.730 --> 00:10:51.730 Rafael: Um, you know, definitely lots of cancellations. When it 193 00:10:51.730 --> 00:10:54.400 comes to different events, I think companies are now trying 194 00:10:54.400 --> 00:10:57.910 to adapt and you know, either will launch virtual events or 195 00:10:57.970 --> 00:11:00.580 have smaller groups or smaller events that are, you know, 196 00:11:00.580 --> 00:11:04.270 they're able to accommodate, I think most corporations have an 197 00:11:04.600 --> 00:11:07.000 opportunity for employees to stay home and work from home 198 00:11:07.000 --> 00:11:10.090 programs, I think until, until the end of the year, you know, 199 00:11:10.090 --> 00:11:12.730 for sure, you can stay home and work from home and most 200 00:11:12.730 --> 00:11:15.580 companies, but I think the leading brands are trying to 201 00:11:15.580 --> 00:11:18.100 adapt, they're trying to figure out a better way to do it. I 202 00:11:18.100 --> 00:11:20.830 think the appetite is still there, for us to meet, to 203 00:11:20.830 --> 00:11:23.650 network and work together to move the industry forward. But 204 00:11:23.980 --> 00:11:25.510 it's definitely taking some adjusting. 205 00:11:26.350 --> 00:11:29.290 Vlad: Absolutely. And companies are evolving, like the fintechs 206 00:11:29.290 --> 00:11:33.190 that are maybe becoming more remote, they're not just looking 207 00:11:33.190 --> 00:11:38.410 at it as temporarily bandaid type of solution, like they are 208 00:11:38.440 --> 00:11:41.230 changing the way that they recruit, some of them are still 209 00:11:41.260 --> 00:11:44.230 actually hiring a lot of people. And all of that is happening 210 00:11:44.230 --> 00:11:46.990 completely online completely digitally, because they're 211 00:11:46.990 --> 00:11:52.030 hiring for remote roles. And there is this big shift in terms 212 00:11:52.030 --> 00:11:55.210 of employment, the gig economy, and the freelance economy is on 213 00:11:55.210 --> 00:11:58.600 the rise. So I think that in the fintech community that was 214 00:11:58.600 --> 00:12:01.570 already a little bit more agile than some of the other 215 00:12:01.900 --> 00:12:05.500 industries, this is their time to shine really, to be able to 216 00:12:05.500 --> 00:12:08.140 leverage some of the innovation and technology that's available 217 00:12:08.140 --> 00:12:12.520 out there, so that they're not as impacted as those businesses 218 00:12:12.520 --> 00:12:15.340 that aren't as set up technically. 219 00:12:15.940 --> 00:12:18.970 Sean Murray: Got it. So my next question is kind of twofold. And 220 00:12:18.970 --> 00:12:22.960 it's, it's kind of an open ended, what's your prediction 221 00:12:23.200 --> 00:12:25.420 for what's going to happen next? And part of that is in the 222 00:12:25.420 --> 00:12:29.590 context of, you know, what has just happened with COVID? but 223 00:12:29.590 --> 00:12:32.890 also with what's happening with digital adoption? What's your 224 00:12:32.890 --> 00:12:34.960 prediction for where things are going to go next? 225 00:12:35.170 --> 00:12:38.200 Rafael: I think it's gonna speed up a lot faster than you know, 226 00:12:38.200 --> 00:12:41.770 it was on pace to happen, right? I think now, we're seeing a ton 227 00:12:41.770 --> 00:12:45.010 of innovation and the insurance sector, in the loan sector in 228 00:12:45.010 --> 00:12:48.250 the financial space, where companies are moving much faster 229 00:12:48.250 --> 00:12:51.220 towards, you know, having a digital experience. I think part 230 00:12:51.220 --> 00:12:53.500 of that is because the consumers were already trending in that 231 00:12:53.560 --> 00:12:55.840 direction, right? There's an expectation from a consumer 232 00:12:55.840 --> 00:13:00.160 standpoint to be able to easily shop financial products online. 233 00:13:00.190 --> 00:13:02.650 Right. So I think that's going to continue, I think it's just 234 00:13:02.650 --> 00:13:05.560 gonna be done at a much faster rate now, 235 00:13:06.740 --> 00:13:11.300 Vlad: Exactly. When it comes to adoption of financial products 236 00:13:11.300 --> 00:13:14.540 in Canada. And if you look at the financial sector overall, 237 00:13:14.540 --> 00:13:18.080 over the past few years, a lot of the adoption has been 238 00:13:18.110 --> 00:13:21.290 encouraged and driven really by the big players, and the brands 239 00:13:21.290 --> 00:13:24.650 and the industries that have been able to bring good customer 240 00:13:24.650 --> 00:13:29.330 experiences, secure experiences in the digital rail. And they've 241 00:13:29.330 --> 00:13:32.600 been putting some money behind it as well to spread the word 242 00:13:32.630 --> 00:13:36.860 that this these types of services are available. So now 243 00:13:36.890 --> 00:13:39.800 within the financial sector, certain sub sectors have been 244 00:13:39.800 --> 00:13:44.060 more efficient at this than others as well. And there's been 245 00:13:44.510 --> 00:13:47.990 now thanks to some of that activity there is it's paved the 246 00:13:47.990 --> 00:13:52.370 way for other financial industries to catch up. And 247 00:13:52.520 --> 00:13:56.840 today, financial sectors, including the loans and 248 00:13:56.840 --> 00:14:03.230 financing, insurance, investing, money transfers, and currency 249 00:14:03.260 --> 00:14:06.800 exchanges, even cryptocurrency that's becoming slowly a more 250 00:14:06.800 --> 00:14:11.240 significant part of the financial world. All of those 251 00:14:11.270 --> 00:14:15.650 are very, very seriously focused on not just digital adoption as 252 00:14:15.650 --> 00:14:19.670 an option, but as a must. And as the standard way of doing 253 00:14:19.670 --> 00:14:25.130 business. And consumers, it's much easier for them now, for us 254 00:14:25.130 --> 00:14:27.710 as consumers really to adopt this kind of behavior because 255 00:14:27.710 --> 00:14:30.380 we're sitting at home for so much of the time. We've already 256 00:14:30.380 --> 00:14:34.310 been used to shopping online and using e-commerce for everyday 257 00:14:34.310 --> 00:14:38.990 household items. And digital financial items and products are 258 00:14:38.990 --> 00:14:41.660 really no different. And those lines are starting to be more 259 00:14:41.660 --> 00:14:44.720 blurred. So I think what we've started noticing over the past 260 00:14:44.720 --> 00:14:47.660 few years with digital adoption of financial products will 261 00:14:47.660 --> 00:14:54.590 continue to accelerate, like Raf said, and far beyond the impact 262 00:14:54.620 --> 00:14:56.330 that's been brought on as a result of COVID 263 00:14:57.380 --> 00:14:59.420 Rafael: Just to add to Vlad's point, you know, we sit in a 264 00:14:59.420 --> 00:15:02.540 pretty unique position because we do offer connects financing 265 00:15:02.540 --> 00:15:05.150 financing rounds with people in a variety of different 266 00:15:05.150 --> 00:15:08.780 industries. Certain industries, were pretty old school, you 267 00:15:08.780 --> 00:15:12.740 know, like equipment, truck financing boat financing, where 268 00:15:12.740 --> 00:15:15.380 traditionally everything was done to the dealership level are 269 00:15:15.380 --> 00:15:17.840 now becoming more and more digital as well, we're seeing an 270 00:15:17.840 --> 00:15:20.150 increase in demand for those products, we're seeing an 271 00:15:20.150 --> 00:15:24.410 increase in companies offering those products online. So we 272 00:15:24.410 --> 00:15:26.690 hope that's going to continue. And we definitely see it from a 273 00:15:26.690 --> 00:15:29.270 consumer standpoint, they're much more accustomed to going 274 00:15:29.270 --> 00:15:33.290 and purchasing large ticket items online nowadays. 275 00:15:34.470 --> 00:15:36.570 Vlad: And even if you look at the way that brands and 276 00:15:36.570 --> 00:15:39.840 companies are adapting and responding to what's happening, 277 00:15:40.350 --> 00:15:44.340 when we first started Smarter Loans in 2016, right, we were 278 00:15:44.340 --> 00:15:47.070 convincing companies to work with us to helping them bring 279 00:15:47.070 --> 00:15:50.760 their digital products online, and sharing them with the 280 00:15:50.790 --> 00:15:56.280 audiences in Canada. And now leading up to 2020, ee were 281 00:15:56.280 --> 00:15:59.760 working with over 50 different financial brands, okay, that are 282 00:15:59.760 --> 00:16:03.570 available in the country. And if you look at just what happened 283 00:16:03.570 --> 00:16:06.300 over the past three, four months, we were actually able to 284 00:16:06.300 --> 00:16:10.320 establish relationships with significantly more companies, 285 00:16:10.530 --> 00:16:14.760 right close to 40 companies just in the past few months, that 286 00:16:14.760 --> 00:16:19.290 suddenly became so much more active and said that we need to 287 00:16:19.440 --> 00:16:22.740 make digital accessibility a priority in order for us to 288 00:16:22.740 --> 00:16:26.550 survive not just in the short term, but in the long term. And 289 00:16:26.580 --> 00:16:30.420 we are happy to see this shift. We're encouraging it and we are 290 00:16:30.420 --> 00:16:32.880 actually encouraging companies to come in and work with us 291 00:16:32.880 --> 00:16:35.130 because this is what we do at Smarter Loans. 292 00:16:36.060 --> 00:16:38.490 Sean Murray: Well, that's very insightful stuff. Thank you very 293 00:16:38.490 --> 00:16:42.060 much, Vlad and Raf at Smarter Loans. Appreciate you being here 294 00:16:42.060 --> 00:16:42.690 and your time. 295 00:16:43.080 --> 00:16:45.180 Vlad: Sean, thanks so much for taking the time to speak with 296 00:16:45.180 --> 00:16:46.950 us. It was really a great pleasure. 297 00:16:47.610 --> 00:16:49.110 Rafael: Thank you, Sean. We're excited. 298 00:16:49.500 --> 00:16:49.920 Sean Murray: Thank you.