Capital that flexes with revenue.
Revenue-based financing (RBF), sometimes called a merchant cash advance (MCA), is the fastest funding structure available to a small business. The funder advances a lump sum against your future deposits, and you repay a fixed percentage of every day’s revenue until the obligation is satisfied. When sales are up, you pay more; when they’re down, you pay less.
What is revenue-based financing?
Revenue-based financing — sometimes called a merchant cash advance, or MCA — is the purchase of a portion of a business’s future receipts at a discount. A funder advances a lump sum, commonly $10,000 to $2,000,000, against the deposits the business expects to generate, then collects a fixed percentage of each business day’s deposits (often 8–15%) until an agreed total is repaid. It is priced with a factor rate, typically 1.15 to 1.45, rather than an interest rate: a 1.30 factor on $100,000 means $130,000 is owed in total, regardless of how quickly it is repaid. Legally it is a purchase of receivables and not a loan, and it underwrites deposit history rather than credit score, which is why it funds in a day or two and why it costs more than a term loan. Secure Capital Solutions is a broker, not a funder: the advance is originated, underwritten, and funded by an independent Lender Partner.
How it works
The funder reviews 3–6 months of your business bank statements and offers an advance based on your average monthly deposit volume. They’re not pricing in APR — they’re pricing in factor rate: a multiplier (typically between 1.15 and 1.45) applied to the advance amount to determine total repayment.
Once you accept terms, the advance wires within 24–48 hours. Starting the next business day, the funder takes a fixed percentage of every business-day deposit (often 8–15%) directly from your bank account until total repayment is complete — usually 3 to 18 months later, depending on factor rate, holdback percentage, and your revenue trajectory.
When RBF is the right fit
- Speed is the priority. Same-day decision, next-day funding. Almost no other product matches this.
- Underwriting that doesn’t hinge on credit. RBF underwrites deposit volume, not FICO. Owners with credit damage but real revenue still qualify.
- Short-horizon needs. A short-term opportunity, an emergency, a bridge to a tax refund or a contracted milestone.
- Variable revenue. The flexible repayment matches the cash flow.
What to know before you take it
RBF is the most expensive product in our menu when you measure cost-of-capital strictly. The factor rate translates to an effective rate that, on short repayment timelines, is materially higher than a term loan. The reason it still funds tens of billions a year in this country is that for many businesses the alternative isn’t a cheaper loan — it’s no loan. We’ll only recommend RBF when the use of capital justifies the cost or the alternatives aren’t available.
RBF is not a loan in the legal sense; it’s a purchase of future receivables. That has implications for how it shows up on your books and tax returns. We’ll walk you through it.
Cost in plain terms
The simplest way to think about RBF cost is the factor rate. A 1.30 factor on $100K means total repayment is $130K — a $30K cost of capital. Whether that’s expensive depends on your timeline: $30K over six months is fast, $30K over eighteen months is much cheaper.
Worked example
Illustrative only. Actual factor rate, holdback percentage, and total cost are determined by the funder after reviewing your bank statements. Formal disclosures, including any state-required commercial financing disclosures (e.g., NY CFDL, CA SB 1235), will accompany any written offer.
What you’ll need to apply
RBF has the shortest document list of anything we place. In most cases the file is complete in under an hour.
- Three to six months of business bank statements. Bank-generated PDFs for the account your deposits land in — this is the underwriting.
- A one-page application. Legal name, EIN, entity type, industry, time in business, and average monthly revenue.
- Photo ID for each owner holding 20% or more.
- A voided check or bank letter. For the account the advance wires into and the daily holdback comes out of.
- Disclosure of existing advances. If you already have an advance outstanding, say so up front; stacking changes the offer and hiding it kills the deal at funding.
- Merchant processing statements. Only if the holdback is tied to card volume rather than to total bank deposits.