BizX

BizX

BizX Logo
Type	Private
Industry	Financial Technology, Barter, Trade Exchange
Founders	Bob Bagga (Co-founder, CEO) Chris Haddawy (Co-founder, EVP) Raj Kapoor (Non-employee co-founder)
Area served	Washington, California, Dubai
Products	Network-based private currency (BizX Dollars)
Services	Business-to-business trade exchange
Website	bizx.com

BizX is an American financial technology company that operates a digital private currency (the BizX dollar) that facilitates business-to-business exchange of goods and services, helping businesses improve their cash flow by using BizX dollars to increase their revenue and decrease their costs. ^[1]

Originally designed as a barter exchange, BizX has been upgraded to the digital private currency model, one that facilitates indirect trade by allowing members to earn BizX dollars from one member and spend them with another.^[2]

The BizX community consists of more than 4,000 members who conduct more than $80 million in transactions per year.^[1]

The company is headquartered in Seattle, Washington, with offices in Oakland, California and Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Company History & Culture

BizX was founded in 2002 by Bob Bagga, Chris Haddawy, and Raj Kapoor. All three partners had previous experience in the barter exchange industry. Before founding BizX, Bagga was the founder of Barter Business Exchange (BBE).^[1] Later, BBE merged to create UBarter.com, which was sold to Network Commerce in 2001.^[3] Haddawy was previously president of the Barter Business Network, and general manager of BarterTrust, overseeing West Coast operations.^[4]

Acquisition of Dibspace

In 2010, BizX acquired Dibspace, an online marketplace that facilitated business-to-business and business-to-consumer exchanges of products and services using a private currency called Dibits.^[5]

Company Purpose

According to Bob Bagga, CEO of BizX, the company’s purpose is to improve the lives and businesses of its members: “More than 30 percent of the global economy is composed of non-cash transactions – we want to open that up to small businesses and become the world’s largest and most widely accepted private currency. Every day we hear stories of how we have helped our members, from giving them the purchasing power to buy a new marketing campaign, to sending a valued employee or owner on a much needed vacation. It isn’t theoretical. It is real and it happens every day.”^[6]

Office Locations

Seattle, Washington
Head office opened in 2002, serving the greater Seattle metropolitan area.

Oakland, California
Satellite office opened in 2002, serving the greater San Francisco metropolitan area.

Dubai, UAE
Satellite office opened in 2007, operating large arbitrage deals unique to the UAE market.

Business Model

The BizX network is a private economy comprising 4000 member businesses that monetize excess inventory or capacity at full market rate in BizX dollars. Businesses then use their earned BizX currency to offset cash expenses such as advertising, travel, entertainment, etc. The model produced more than $81,000,000 BizX dollars in transactions in 2015.

BizX primarily earns its revenue from transaction fees, typically 7.5% when selling and 7.5% when buying within the BizX network. Sometimes confused with credit card fees, BizX fees are more comparable to sales or marketing channel fees such as those from HotelTonight, Groupon, or other business sales channels.^[7]

BizX dollars are a private currency not exchangeable for cash. They do not take possession of money for transmission, have stored value, earn interest, or act as securities.^[8] Nor are BizX dollars a cryptocurrency, as the company is not a money transmitter.^[9] BizX dollars simply denote a member’s right to receive from (or obligation to pay) another member in the network. Such member rights are held between the members. BizX serves as an arms-length third-party record keeper. BizX does not hold collateral or guarantee trades between members.^[10]

Barter Exchange

BizX was initially built as a barter exchange, and therefore retains many elements familiar to barter exchanges. Now a digital private currency operator, BizX facilitates the exchange of goods and services between more than 4,000 businesses within the BizX community.

Unlike many traditional barter exchanges, BizX pairs its currency to the value of the US dollar, ensuring that the BizX currency retains the strongest spending power possible.

Additionally, BizX differentiates itself from other barter exchanges by targeting an extremely diverse range of business types, as well as investing deeply in their financial technology software.

Transaction Platform

BizX acts as a transaction processor and 3rd party record keeper for all buyers and sellers. Sellers can charge buyers’ BizX accounts by phone or online portal. Funds are available to the seller immediately when the transaction is run, with zero processing or holding time.

Customer Relationship Management System

BizX assists its members in identifying how to monetize their excess capacity, by marketing to other members looking for the same service.^[11]

Lending Facility

BizX offers lines of credit to member businesses at the rate of 1.5% per month (18% annually), payable in BizX dollars.

Marketplace

The BizX marketplace features listings for all members businesses, as well as individual product and service listings. Members can create individual listings for products and services without cost.

BizX App

BizX launched its mobile app in 2016. The app is designed to help BizX Members find each other, send payments, as well as stores digital BizX card, Members balance and transactional history.^[12]

Community

BizX comprises more than 4000 member businesses that operate in more than 120 different categories, including advertising, construction, event planning, food & beverage, technology, web services, etc.

Regulations

IRS Regulation

BizX is classified as a barter exchange and therefore subject to IRS regulations pertaining to such exchanges. The model complies with TEFRA-based IRS 1099B reporting requirements.^[13]

IRS Reporting

BizX is required by the IRS to act as a third-party record keeper of transactions made through the exchange. All sales made using BizX dollars are reported to the IRS via a 1099-B.^[14]

Company Recognition

• San Francisco Business Times Fast 50 Growing Businesses in the East Bay, 2006^[15]
• Seattle Mayor’s Small Business Award, 2006^[16]
• Puget Sound Business Journal’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies, 2006^[17]
• Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the United States, 2007^[18]
• Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the United States, 2008^[19]
• Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the United States, 2009^[20]
• Puget Sound Business Journal’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies, 2009^[21]
• Puget Sound Business Journal’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies, 2010^[22]
• Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the United States, 2010^[23]
• Puget Sound Business Journal’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies, 2011^[24]
• Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Dubai, #14 of Top 100, 2011^[25]
• Stars of the Business Awards, Trade Category First Place Winner, 2012^[26]
• Gulf Capital SME Awards, Business Innovation Finalist, 2014^[27]
• Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies in the United States, 2015^[28]
• IRTA Hall of Fame Winner, Bob Bagga, 2015^[29]

Registered Trademark

BizX is a registered trademark of BizXchange.

Differences from Cryptocurrencies

Unlike cryptocurrencies, BizX transactions are not anonymous. BizX keeps record of every transaction between members, and reports them to the IRS at year-end. Additionally, BizX dollars are merely an accounting unit; no cryptocurrency technology is involved. Finally, BizX transactions do not involve “mining,” or the process by which new units of cryptocurrencies are generated by computers solving complex algorithms.^[30]

References

External links

• Official website

Coordinates: 47°34′43.1″N 122°9′14.4″W / 47.578639°N 122.154000°W / 47.578639; -122.154000

See also

• Media related to BizX at Wikimedia Commons
• Barter
• Financial technology