Consortium of Belgian companies leads the way in electronic invoicing
DigiCrowd was launched on 14 February 2019. DigiCrowd is a consortium of Belgian companies that wants to put the Belgian business market on the European digital map by the end of 2019.
The ambition is to mobilise 100,000 companies to supplement their digital post box with electronic invoices.
Under the slogan “the network always wins” the decision was made to join forces to shape the ambitious plans. Moreover, initiators CodaBox, Sage, Wolters Kluwer and WinBooks want to help the government achieve its objectives by creating a support base for digitisation within businesses.
The DigiCrowd project wants to enable businesses & accountants to:
- Work (together) more efficiently
- Simplify administration
- Create a central and complete document library
Philippe De Backer, Minister of Digital Agenda, Telecommunication and Post, responsible for Administrative Simplification, Social Fraud, Privacy and the North Sea: “Each year in Belgium, over 1 billion invoices are sent and processed in accounts. By sending and processing all those invoices digitally, savings of 3.4 billion euros can be made, and the number of bad payers and the average duration of payment periods can be reduced. That is good business for our economy. Furthermore, it will also decrease the administrative paper trail. We are pleased that Digicrowd is making digital invoicing accessible and that it wants to roll it out across the board.”
Today, about 50% of invoices are sent as a PDF attachment with e-mails. Although this delivery method does indeed use digital channels for sending invoices, it is less suitable for importing the invoice details easily and accurately in accounting, payment or ERP software. An open structured format (UBL) offers a better solution for this.
Using DigiCrowd, the initiators mainly want to:
- Give businesses access to the networks that allow them to exchange electronic invoices with their accountant
- Make sending digital invoices broadly available
- Promote the UBL format as the standard for electronic invoicing
For each business that decides to send their invoices digitally, DigiCrowd will donate an amount to a charity that encourages entrepreneurism, digitisation and social equality.
Marie Costers, Managing Director at CodaBox: “Since starting in 2011 we have played a leading role in our sector by developing technologies that are open and easily integrated. The DigiCrowd initiative therefore fits perfectly in our philosophy and DNA.”
“At Sage we are always looking for new partnerships and ways to make our clients’ lives as simple and efficient as possible. Through DigiCrowd we want to give Belgian businesses the tools to digitise their invoicing and thereby ensure that Belgium does not lag behind in Europe”, explains Alex Dossche, Managing Director at Sage Belux.
Ronny De Goedt, Managing Director at TAA Wolters Kluwer Belgium: “Document digitisation is a necessary first step in the digitisation of work processes for accountants and their clients. This technology will allow accountants to serve their clients/businesses more efficiently and effectively and to develop into genuine business coaches.”
Pierre Borremans, Managing Partner at WinBooks: “Digitisation is an enormous opportunity for both businesses as well as accountants. WinBooks has been investing and developing along these lines for over 15 years. Today, Digicrowd is one of the tools required to help support businesses and their accountants in the digital shift, in such a way that they can integrate digitisation in their strategy and organisations quickly.”
More information
DigiCrowd was established on the initiative of CodaBox in partnership with Sage, Wolters Kluwer and WinBooks.
CodaBox is a scale-up from Leuven (BE) offering digital solutions to over 50% of Belgian accountants and businesses. CodaBox is part of the Isabel Group, the largest Belgian Fintech, that offers a wide range of banking solutions to professional users.
Sage is world leader in business management software. Sage supports businesses in their development, from start-ups to small and medium-sized enterprises, and its mission is to free businesses from the administrative burden so they can focus on their core business.
Wolters Kluwer Tax and Accounting Software has been making business software for SMEs and accountants for over 20 years now. We closely follow new legislative proposals and immediately integrate them in our products. Over 4,000 Belgian accountancy offices and 14,000 SMEs use our software.
Since 2000, WinBooks has been a protagonist in the market for accountancy and management software that is 100% Belgian. Since its establishment, WinBooks has dedicated itself to anticipating its clients’ needs by focusing on new technologies with two key motives: winning time and optimising the collaboration between accountants and their clients.