HP, like other tech giants, has its own financing division, but it’s not usually a big part of the firm and most customers get their own financing. With credit and financing so tight these days, HP has decided to take matters into its own hands and expand the program by offering zero percent interest. Small Business Computing gets the details.
Taking a page from popular promotions in the automotive industry, HP’s financing group said it’s now offering zero-percent financing for small to medium-sized businesses, aiming to make it easier for them to build out new IT projects even as technology budgets remain tight.
The HP (NYSE: HPQ) program provides promotional deals on financing for up to three years, covering the purchase or leasing of HP equipment including PCs, servers, networking equipment and printers.
The move continues a trend among the big IT companies, including IBM (NYSE: IBM) and others, who are looking to extend their reach beyond the enterprise to the SMB market. It’s an especially aggressive move for HP’s Financial Services subsidiary, itself a huge business with more than $9 billion in portfolio assets and $2.7 billion in annual revenue.
The new program gives businesses the choice to either lease or buy products. A 12-month lease program comes with a $1 purchase option while there is also a 36-month lease with a “fair market value” purchase option from HP’s portfolio.
