Delos

What would you do if a customer did not pay your invoice?

Whenever we ask businesses this question, we invariably get one of three answers. The first is to hire a lawyer, pay for 40-100 hours of legal work, and wait 6-36 months to get your money back. The second is to hire a collection agency, pay 50% of the value and a retainer, and also wait 6-36 months to get your money back.

The third - and most frequent - is to do nothing, because the amount is too small to justify the cost or the business cannot afford a lawyer's retainer.

Each year companies abandon billions of dollars because nothing can be done.

For many US businesses, even a valid and well-documented claim is uneconomic to pursue through traditional legal channels. Claims below $20,000, and in many cases below $50,000, are frequently abandoned because they do not justify the cost, time, and uncertainty of going to court.

This creates a large, underserved market. We estimate that US businesses generate approximately $110 billion annually in plausibly recoverable commercial claims below $20,000, and approximately $175 billion below $50,000.

Delos is offering businesses the alternative to doing nothing.

Delos buys valid unpaid commercial claims from businesses. We give the seller cash upfront in exchange for assigning us the rights to the claim, then pursue it in our own name. Currently, we offer about 50-80% of the claim's face value.

If this feels generous, it is because we want to be competitive with the alternatives. We want Delos to be cheaper than a lawyer or a collection agency while giving businesses cash upfront, not in three years.