It is a modern version of buying future receivables: the funder purchases a share of future sales at a discount, repaid as sales come in.
Check my optionsMerchant cash advance
The merchant cash advance is a modern product built on a very old idea: buying a business future receivables at a discount. Understanding that lineage explains why it is priced and repaid differently from a loan.
Amount to request
$85,000.00
Funding range$25K to $5M
*Sample amounts shown. Your actual offer depends on your business and is reviewed before approval.
Your file goes to funders that fit it, so offers can be compared.
Approved files are usually funded the next business day.
You can apply at 500; stronger credit opens more products.
A person reviews your revenue, time in business and bank activity, often within hours.
Fast decisions. Applying takes about 5 minutes.
A short application. A soft credit pull to start.
We review revenue, time in business and bank activity, not just a credit score.
You see the amount, the schedule and the full repayment amount before you sign.
Funding in as little as 24 hours for qualified businesses.
Selling receivables is centuries old. Merchants and traders have long sold the right to collect future payments to financiers who paid cash up front at a discount, the same principle behind modern invoice factoring. Factoring became a standard tool in industries such as textiles and later spread across manufacturing, staffing and freight.
The merchant cash advance applied that principle to card sales. As credit and debit card payments became the norm for retailers and restaurants, funders realized they could purchase a share of a merchant future card receipts and collect it directly from card settlements through the payment processor. The modern industry is commonly traced to the late 1990s, and it grew rapidly after the 2008 financial crisis, when many banks pulled back from small-business lending.
Because it is structured as a purchase of receivables rather than a loan, the classic advance uses a factor rate to set a fixed total payback and collects a percentage of sales, so payments rise and fall with revenue. Many true advances include reconciliation, allowing payments to adjust to actual receivables. Over time, many funders moved from processor splits to fixed ACH debits from the bank account, which made the product available to businesses beyond card-heavy retail.
The industry has since attracted more regulation. Several states, including California, New York, Utah, Virginia, Florida, Georgia and Texas, have adopted commercial financing disclosure or registration requirements in recent years, and courts have examined whether specific agreements are true receivables purchases or disguised loans.
Today MCAs sit alongside lines of credit and second-position options in marketplaces such as MFE, which considers credit from 500 and compares offers from multiple funders.
Here is how a modern advance applies the receivables-purchase idea. Illustrative numbers.
| Amount funded | $60,000 |
| Factor rate | 1.35 |
| Total payback (amount × factor) | $81,000 |
| Fees deducted at funding (2%) | $1,200 |
| Net cash you receive | $58,800 |
| Weekly payment over 52 weeks | $1,558 |
| Same total as daily debits (~260 business days) | $312/day |
Illustrative numbers only. Your offer depends on your file; always compare net cash and total payback in writing.
| Historical trade finance | Selling future payments at a discount |
| Invoice factoring | Selling B2B invoices |
| Card-split MCA | Share of card settlements |
| ACH-based advance | Fixed debits from bank deposits |
| Recent years | State disclosure and registration laws |
Good fit:
Probably not yet:
It applies the old practice of buying receivables at a discount to card sales; the modern industry is commonly traced to the late 1990s.
Because it is structured as a purchase of receivables with a fixed total payback.
Many banks reduced small-business lending, leaving demand for faster alternatives.
Many now use fixed ACH debits from bank deposits.
Several states now require disclosures or registration for commercial financing providers.
Classic MCAs are structured as receivables purchases; courts examine specific agreements.
Example uses for illustration only.
Before you apply:
One secure application. A soft credit pull to start. No obligation to accept an offer.
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