logo Naya and Arc

Building a smarter, safer finance function at Arc and Naya

Arc made waves with the Arc Pulse — a sleek, minimalist smartphone case that put the brand on the global stage. Naya followed with Naya Create, a modular ergonomic keyboard for creative pros. With shared roots in design and scale, both operate in fast-paced, high-demand environments where financial clarity and efficiency are essential.

HQ
Groningen (NL)
Industry
Accessories and consumer electronics
Employees
25
Payhawk customer since
June 2023
Features they love
  • Accounts Payable
  • Exact Online integration
  • Virtual cards

Arc and Naya's Payhawk experience in numbers:

  • Get 100% real-time visibility into upcoming payments and company spend
  • Save hours per month by automating manual finance tasks
  • Reduce risk and maintain tighter control with virtual cards and approval workflows
  • Onboard team members faster and collaborate more effectively across finance

Life before Payhawk

Before Payhawk, the finance team at Arc and Naya felt they were flying blind.

As fast-growing consumer tech and lifestyle brands, the pace of spending across departments — from creative to operations — was only accelerating. But Financial Controller Shuhul Koul and his team had no way to see expenses clearly, let alone control them. Expenses often surfaced only after money had left the account, with critical financial data scattered across tools and teams, and the finance team knew there must be a better approach.

“It wasn’t just about late receipts,” Shuhul explains. “Before Payhawk, we didn’t have the systems in place to spot spending early enough to make the right decisions. Now, however, I can open Payhawk, filter for what's due next week, and instantly see what’s moving. That gives me real control over what’s happening on the ground."

Shuhul Koul, Junior Financial Controller at Arc/Naya

"With Accounts Payable from Payhawk, we finally have full visibility into what needs to be paid, allowing us to act proactively rather than regretting mistakes afterwards!"

Shuhul Koul, Financial Controller at Arc and Naya

Better forecasting with real-time data

Since implementing our solution, Arc and Naya’s finance team has turned forecasting into a strategic advantage. Instead of being forced to react to cash flow surprises, they can now plan ahead with confidence (using insights powered by real-time visibility into every payment and cost centre).

Plus, with our subscription management tools, the team has introduced a new layer of financial discipline. They now actively review ongoing tools and services, checking whether each one is still in use or delivering value. And all that accountability adds up quickly, reducing waste and sharpening forecasts across the board.

Shuhul describes:

Before, we just paid whatever came in. Now, we ask: Is this subscription still in use? Do we need it? The subscription management feature from Payhawk helps us keep track and make sure we’re not paying for things we don’t use. Payhawk builds in those checks, and that’s a game-changer.

Minimising risk with better spend controls

Today, every euro spent at Arc and Naya flows through a system designed for control. The finance team now has confidence that the company's spend is safe, visible, and aligned with policy. At Payhawk, our layered spend controls — from custom card limits to approval workflows — give Arc and Naya exactly what they need to give their team freedom to spend within a robust framework.

Plus, with the introduction of virtual corporate cards and smart controls, the team has added more than oversight; it’s created peace of mind. Even with hundreds of thousands moving through the business, the team knows exactly who’s spending, how much, and on what. It’s transformed the finance function into a tighter, safer, and more scalable operation.

Shuhul explains:

To be honest, we felt that giving everyone access to our company's main bank account was risky. We have thousands, sometimes millions, flowing through that account... But with Payhawk, the spend is isolated, and exposure to funds is limited only to what’s on the platform. That makes a huge difference. It’s a safer, smarter setup!

SPEND CONTROL

Control spend with in-built corporate card controls & limits

Learn more

Saving time and building trust

Since rolling out Payhawk, manual work at Arc and Naya has shrunk dramatically. Thanks to AI and automation, from OCR receipt scanning to automatic categorisation, the team no longer spends hours on tedious admin.

But the benefits go beyond time savings. For Shuhul, it’s also about clarity and confidence. With clear workflows and an intuitive interface, finance has become more transparent than ever.

"It’s not just faster—it’s clearer," Shuhul says. "I always tell my team: your job isn’t just to do the work. It’s to prove it’s been done right. And Payhawk helps us do exactly that."

I want my team to use the analytical part of their brain, not waste time on admin. It’s a simple formula: Less amin, more strategy.

Built to work with Exact Online

As businesses that operate at speed, Arc and Naya needed a finance platform that could keep up, especially when it comes to syncing data between tools. With our native integration to Exact Online, they have exactly that, with no more double-checking or manual rekeying.

“The way Payhawk connects with Exact now? It’s impressive,” says Shuhul. “The integration is smooth, the data flows exactly as it should, and it just works. That reliability has made a huge difference.”

Now, data flows smoothly between systems, eliminating manual work, reducing room for error, and saving a lot of time.

Support that doesn’t make you feel like a number

When things go wrong, the last thing you want is a ticket number and a long wait. And for Arc and Naya, the support experience with us stood out from the beginning, blending smart automation with fast, human help.

“The chatbot often knows exactly what expense I’m working on,” Shuhul notes. “And if I need a person? I get one, quickly. And that’s rare in SaaS these days.”

And compared to other tools the team uses? The difference is huge.

Some vendors get three or four emails before they reply. With Payhawk, I barely ever have to escalate anything. That says a lot.

For Arc and Naya, Payhawk is more than a finance tool — it’s a strategic enabler. With greater visibility, better controls, and seamless integration into Exact Online, the finance team is no longer chasing transactions. They’re confidently leading the financial future of their business.

Ready to see what we can do for your business? Book your personalised demo today and discover how to scale without chaos, just like Arc and Naya.

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