MCA documents
Most delays are paperwork, not underwriting. Here is the short list, the order it is requested in, and how to send it so the first review is also the last.
✓ Checking what you qualify for does not affect your credit score.
At Merchant Fund Express, here is the short answer: Most files need three to six months of PDF bank statements, owner ID, a signed application and a list of open advances. Everything else is requested only if a file needs it.
That is it for a typical first review. Tax returns and full financials are generally not part of an MCA file, though a funder can ask for more on a larger request.
| Stage | What is reviewed | What you provide |
|---|---|---|
| First review | Does the file fit a program at all? | Application and recent statements |
| Underwriting | True revenue, balances, negative days, existing debits, identity and ownership | Missing months, month-to-date activity, owner ID, balances on open positions |
| Closing | Contract terms, payoff amounts, funding and debit accounts | Signed agreement, payoff letters, account details |
Download statements from your online banking as PDFs. A statement is read for its daily balance summary and every line of activity, and screenshots drop both. Name the files by month so a reviewer can see in seconds that nothing is missing.
If you bank in more than one place, include every account that receives sales. A funder will see ACH deposits from a processor or customers go somewhere, and a missing account makes the file look thinner than it is.
| Ready file | Not ready file | |
|---|---|---|
| Statements | Six complete PDFs plus October month-to-date | Three phone screenshots, August skipped |
| Existing advance | Disclosed: $12,000 left at $210 a day | Not mentioned, but visible as a daily debit |
| Result | Answer the same day | Everything requested again, decision pushed back |
Same business, same revenue, different outcome. The difference is entirely in how the file arrives.
Source: Merchant Fund Express.
See MCA requirements for what is measured, and how approval works for what happens after you send it.
A landscaper sends five complete statements, his ID and a one-line note listing two open debits. The reviewer finds nothing to chase and gets him an answer the same day. A second landscaper sends photos of his phone screen and skips July. He waits three days, resends everything and the offer is smaller because the month-to-date picture changed in the meantime.
Source: Merchant Fund Express.
Usually not for a first review. The file is read from bank statements. A funder may ask for more on a larger request, and we will tell you exactly what is needed. That is how Merchant Fund Express reads it on a real file.
Three months is often enough to start, and some files are read on up to six. Month-to-date activity matters late in the month.
A scan of a paper statement is weaker than a PDF downloaded from your bank. If you only have paper, ask the bank for an electronic copy. Source: Merchant Fund Express.
Upload through the application link you started from. Do not email full statements or ID images to anyone who has not been identified as part of your application.
Merchant Fund Express gives a same-day decision. Applying takes a few minutes and will not affect your credit score.
