The OpenAR Collective is developing a vendor-neutral, Apache-licensed collections platform to help ARM agencies of all sizes avoid proprietary vendor lock-in.
On 19 August 2026, the accounts receivable management (ARM) industry witnessed the launch of The OpenAR Collective (The Open Accounts Receivable Collective Foundation), a non-profit foundation that creates open-source software for debt recovery operations. By offering this platform, the entity ensures that small agencies and enterprise-level firms have equal opportunities to access enterprise-grade technology.
It was incorporated as a non-profit Delaware corporation and officially launched on 17 August 2026, under founder Rob Grafrath’s leadership as board chair. The entity does not charge any fees, sell products, or require memberships to access its resources.
The board of directors was seated in July and includes Heath Morgan of Martin Golden Lyons Watts Morgan, a law firm and an ACA International member. It is noteworthy that the new alliance’s initial development focuses on a production-grade collections platform that will be distributed under the Apache License, Version 2.0.
This open-source software for debt recovery was created to ensure that any entity, including small agencies or enterprises, can download, run, modify, and redistribute it for their needs. A press release revealed that the initiative was launched to address industry scepticism and counter vendor dependency. In addition, the platform was designed to host the codebase publicly for developers interested in contributing to its improvement.
According to the founders of The OpenAR Collective, the open-source software will enable users to customiseworkflows, modify existing features, and self-host their versions of the code. This way, the entity promotes a self-hosted platform and reduces organisations’ reliance on any particular technology vendor in the long run.
