insights
Which Companies Buy Unpaid B2B Invoices? (Ranked)
A ranked comparison of Delos AI, Encore Capital Group, Intrum, and debt marketplaces for businesses deciding how to sell unpaid B2B invoices or commercial claims.
TL;DR
- Delos AI ranks first because it buys a single B2B claim of any size outright, pays roughly 80% of face value, and closes fast, with no bulk-portfolio minimum.
- Encore Capital Group and Intrum are institutional debt buyers built for large bulk portfolios of charged-off consumer accounts, not one live commercial invoice, and both run multi-week underwriting.
- Debt marketplaces and auction platforms like DebtX add a broker layer and opaque pricing, and fit large institutional loans or Chapter 11 claims, not an ordinary past-due invoice.
- The number to remember: a current, undisputed B2B claim sells near 70%–95% of face value, while distressed consumer debt buyers like Encore average 8.7%. Don't confuse the two.
Why sellers look to offload unpaid invoices instead of chasing them
A past-due B2B invoice ties up cash you already earned. Chasing it means dunning calls, demand letters, and often litigation that runs for months with no guarantee you collect. For many businesses, the calculus is simple. Selling the claim outright turns an uncertain future recovery into cash in the account now, at a discount you can price ahead of time.
The tradeoff comes down to speed and certainty against maximum recovery. If you run collections in-house or hire counsel, you might recover more, but you carry the cost, the time, and the risk that the debtor never pays. Selling shifts that risk to the buyer and pays you a known percentage today.
That percentage, plus how the deal is structured, is what separates the companies below.
How we ranked these companies
We scored every buyer on four things a seller with a past-due claim actually cares about: minimum claim size, typical percent of face value paid, speed to cash, and deal structure. For this reader, single-claim flexibility and speed carry the most weight, because a business holding one live invoice needs a straight answer and money in days, not a portfolio sale that takes weeks. Bulk-portfolio debt buyers like Encore Capital and Intrum, along with broker marketplaces, are scored on the same four criteria as Delos, even though their acquisition models differ.
1. Delos AI
Delos AI buys a single B2B claim of any size outright, pays close to face value, and closes in days rather than weeks. It ranks first because it removes the two barriers that shut ordinary sellers out of the traditional market. No bulk portfolio minimum, and no multi-week underwriting on a live, documented invoice.
Quick overview. Delos purchases individual commercial claims, from one past-due invoice to a small book of them, and pays cash upfront. It built its platform to automate the full litigation process, including small claims and lien matters that used to be too small to pursue profitably, which is what lets it price a claim near its face value instead of at a distressed discount. Outright purchase is the option for sellers who would rather take money now than run that recovery process themselves.
When to use it. Reach for Delos when you hold one live, undisputed B2B invoice and want certainty over the outcome. You get a fixed payout now instead of months of collections calls and uncertain recovery.
What it costs. Expect roughly 80% of face value on a current, documented commercial claim. That figure sits squarely inside the normal invoice-factoring and claim-purchase band, which independent sources put at 70% to 95% of face value, with around 80% as the standard benchmark. It has nothing to do with the pennies-on-the-dollar pricing that governs charged-off consumer debt.
Limitation. Delos buys commercial trade claims against operating businesses, so it is not the venue for defaulted consumer accounts or years-old distressed paper. Its pricing depends on the invoice being genuine, documented, and enforceable.
Move-on trigger. If your claim is a stack of charged-off consumer accounts rather than a live B2B receivable, a bulk distressed-debt buyer fits your situation better than Delos does.
2. Encore Capital Group
Encore Capital Group is the largest debt buyer in the United States, and its business runs on buying enormous portfolios of defaulted consumer accounts, not individual commercial invoices. The CFPB describes Encore and its subsidiaries as having purchased the rights to collect over $200 billion in defaulted consumer debts on credit cards, phone bills, and similar accounts.
Quick overview. Encore acquires large books of charged-off consumer debt through subsidiaries like Midland Funding and Midland Credit Management, then collects on those balances itself.
When to use it. Only if you are an originating creditor with a sizable portfolio of delinquent consumer accounts to sell in bulk, not a single business claim.
What it costs. Encore's average purchase price ran 8.7% of face value in 2024, because it prices distressed, aged consumer paper where recovery odds are low. That figure has nothing to do with what a live B2B invoice fetches.
Limitation. Encore's documented model is bulk consumer-account acquisition at deep discount, not per-claim commercial purchase. The regulatory record shows it buying portfolios where sellers only claimed balances were "approximate," which suits volume, not a single verified invoice.
Move-on trigger. If you hold one commercial invoice rather than a large consumer-debt portfolio, Encore is the wrong door.
3. Intrum
Intrum is a European-heritage debt purchaser and servicer that buys large portfolios and services them at scale, following the same institutional model as Encore rather than buying single commercial claims.
Quick overview. Intrum operates across Europe as a credit-management company that acquires portfolios of defaulted accounts and runs collections against them. Its business is built on volume, not on the single past-due invoice most B2B sellers hold.
When to use it. Consider Intrum only if you carry a sizable portfolio of receivables and want an established servicer to take it off your books.
What it costs. Intrum publishes no minimum claim size and no typical percent of face value for outright purchase. That lack of published pricing means a seller cannot compare Intrum against alternatives before committing to a sales call. A seller with one commercial invoice cannot get a straight quote without entering a sales conversation aimed at portfolio-scale deals.
Limitation. Underwriting runs on institutional timelines that stretch into weeks, and the pricing you eventually see reflects bulk-portfolio economics rather than per-claim commercial rates.
Move-on trigger. If you need an answer in days rather than weeks, or you hold anything short of a large portfolio, look elsewhere.
4. Debt marketplace and auction platforms
Quick overview. Debt marketplaces cover two distinct animals. Loan-sale advisors like DebtX run technology-enabled sales of whole loans, while bankruptcy claims-trading is a private market where distressed-debt funds buy creditor claims against companies in Chapter 11. Both put a broker between you and the buyer.
When to use it. Reach for this layer when you hold a large institutional loan or a claim against a debtor already in bankruptcy. Claims trading suits a vendor owed money by a counterparty that filed Chapter 11, since institutional buyers will pay for a position they can use in the restructuring.
What it costs. Neither channel posts pricing. DebtX structures each sale individually and discloses no percentage of face value or speed-to-cash figures. Bankruptcy claims trade at privately negotiated prices, and the purchase price stays off the public court filing.
Limitation. DebtX deal flow concentrates in commercial real estate, C&I, and institutional loans running from the hundreds of thousands into the tens of millions, with no published pricing. Claims trading only applies once your debtor formally enters Chapter 11. Neither handles an ordinary past-due B2B invoice.
Move-on trigger. If your claim isn't tied to a bankruptcy proceeding or a large institutional loan, this layer adds a broker and opaque pricing without solving your actual problem.
Comparison table
Here is how the four buyers compare on the metrics that matter to a seller holding a live B2B claim.
| Buyer | Minimum claim size | Typical % of face value | Speed to cash |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delos AI | None (single claim, any size) | ~80% | Fast, days |
| Encore Capital Group | Large bulk portfolios | ~8.7% (2024 average, NCLC) | Multi-week underwriting |
| Intrum | Not publicly disclosed (portfolio-oriented) | Not publicly disclosed | Not publicly disclosed |
| Debt marketplace / auction platforms | Hundreds of thousands to millions | Not publicly disclosed | Not publicly disclosed |
Encore's figure reflects distressed consumer debt, not a live commercial invoice. Read it as contrast, not as what you would receive for an undisputed B2B claim.
The bottom line on where to sell
If you hold one live B2B claim and want cash without a fight, Delos AI is the clear pick. Delos buys single claims of any size, pays around 80% of face value, and closes fast, while Encore and Intrum want bulk portfolios and the marketplace layer adds a broker you don't need.
Selling outright is the fast path, but it is not the only one. The same Delos platform automates litigation end to end, including small claims and lien matters. If you would rather pursue full recovery than take a discount today, that option sits right beside the sale. Start by getting a quote on your claim to see which path fits.
FAQs
What percent of face value should I expect for a single $10,000 B2B invoice?
Expect somewhere in the 70% to 95% range, with roughly 80% as the typical figure for a live, undisputed commercial invoice. That band reflects invoice factoring and commercial claim pricing, not distressed consumer debt. Delos AI pays around 80% of face value, which sits squarely inside that normal range. Do not confuse this with the pennies-on-the-dollar rates that apply to charged-off consumer accounts.
Why do distressed consumer debt buyers pay so little compared to that?
Distressed consumer debt is old, often defaulted, and hard to collect, so buyers price for low recovery odds. Encore Capital Group averaged 8.7% of face value in 2024, and PRA Group averaged 12%. Those benchmarks apply to bulk portfolios of credit card and phone bills, not to a current B2B invoice owed by an operating business. If you hold a live commercial claim, use the 70% to 95% band instead.
What about a mid-sized $50,000 to $100,000 commercial claim?
The same 70% to 95% factoring band applies, and a well-documented mid-sized claim tends to land in the upper part of it. Debtor creditworthiness, invoice age, and industry drive where you fall. A recent invoice against a solvent, paying business earns more than an aged claim against a shaky debtor. Delos AI buys these mid-sized commercial claims outright, so you can lock in a figure in that band today rather than negotiating a portfolio sale. The consumer-debt rates from Encore and PRA remain irrelevant here.
Why does a $500,000 to $2 million portfolio land toward the higher end of the band?
Larger, cleaner portfolios spread diligence cost across many invoices and diversify risk, so buyers can pay closer to the 95% end. A single small or higher-risk claim carries the same per-deal review cost against a smaller balance, which pushes it toward the lower end. The full 70% to 95% band still holds across sizes. No source publishes exact tier-by-tier percentages, so treat these as directional pulls within the band rather than fixed numbers.