Bidadoo fills small-ticket financing void in online equipment auctions

MINNEAPOLIS — Online equipment auction company bidadoo is embracing technology to expand and streamline small-ticket financing options.  

The Seattle-based company recently partnered with fintech ClickLease to connect bidders with small-ticket lenders and offer pre-qualification for assets priced up to $25,000, without a hard credit pull.  

Register here for our free upcoming webinar on used equipment inventory. 

While bidadoo has traditionally worked with lenders to finance larger assets, it recognized a need for more lending options for smaller assets, Chandler Hawk, financial services program manager, told Equipment Finance News at the National Equipment Finance Association conference today. 

“Our sweet spot with [ClickLease] is the smaller assets that wouldn’t qualify with a different lender,” he said. “That $2,500 to $12,000 is really a space that we didn’t feel like was met in the market. And ClickLease, that’s where they win — those smaller-ticket items for an upcoming business or a new startup — and they can get them approved quickly.” 

With weekly Tuesday auctions pulling in bidders from across the globe, it was also crucial to find a partner to finance small-ticket items quickly, Hawk said.  

“What we found in the market is that there’s not really a player to be able to quickly and efficiently finance those micro-ticket units that we sell on a weekly basis,” he said. “A lot of our selling partners — these large rental companies and fleets — move a lot of these smaller assets.” 

Through the fintech partnership, bidders “can show up Tuesday with an item that they’re excited to bid on, and they can get approved in minutes and go bid with confidence,” he said.  

Online auctions growing 

The global online auction market for hard-asset equipment is projected to grow 23.5% year over year in 2025 and 28.9% annually from 2024 to 2029, according to technology research and advisory firm Technavio. 

Customer trust is crucial to stay competitive as the online auction market grows, Hawk said. A thorough inspection of each unit is one way to achieve this, he added. 

“When you’re buying a piece of equipment without going and seeing it and driving it, having the confidence that the person you’re working with on the other end is reputable and going to do right by you is key,” Hawk said. “We spend a lot of time going out and inspecting every machine.” 

Providing extensive photos and videos of a machine’s condition is also important when marketing used equipment, he said. 

Register here for the free Equipment Finance News webinar “High-priced used equipment inventory: The no-man’s land of equipment finance” set for Tuesday, Oct. 21, at 11 a.m. ET.