Archive for 2023
Enova’s Current Small Business Lending Strategy
February 10, 2023
“We are being very conservative with our small business lending right now. There’s a tremendous amount of demand,” said David Fisher, CEO of Enova, on the company’s most recently quarterly earnings call. “I think both demand from businesses who need money coming out of COVID still but also from a lack of competition and a reduction of competition. So there’s a tremendous amount of demand. We’re filling a very small portion of it as we are trying to remain very, very conservative with respect to our originations, so we can manage through any turmoil in the economy.”
Fisher said that for its small business lending right now, the focus is really on diversification, that being “diversification across states, across industries, across product types and across kind of the credit spectrum.”
“…as we’ve just seen over the last 6 to 12 months, there are some industries that are doing well for a couple of quarters and some that are doing worse and then that rotates,” he said. “And having that strong diversification has allowed us to manage through that variability over the last couple of years without too much difficulty.”
Despite the company’s conservative strategy right now, Enova still managed to originate $826M in small business loans in Q4 2022, an increase from the $807M in the previous quarter.
Given all of Enova’s consistent success, especially in the current environment, one analyst asked if there was a play for the company to increase its marketshare.
“So we’re not being super aggressive with taking share right now because we don’t want to be too aggressive with our lending,” Fisher replied. “But we continue to build out products and expand the types of opportunities we can offer to small businesses and we’ll continue to do that over time so that as we do get aggressive hopefully in the next — more aggressive over the next 6 to 12 months, we can take our industry-leading position, combine that with the new products that we can offer customers and we’ll be even in a more dominant position. So we’re gaining share kind of just by the fact that competitors are pulling back even more due to credit concerns or lack of capital and we’re fine with that. But we’re not trying to maximize our market share right now because we do want to make sure that we’re being smart about credit. But continuing to build in the background so that when we do get more aggressive, we’re really well positioned.”
New Challenge to MCA Legality in New York
February 10, 2023
It’s effectively well settled law, that proper purchases of future receivables are not considered loans in New York State. But a three year-old merchant cash advance case is poised to become center stage for a fresh review of that policy.
At issue is AH Wines Inc., et al. v C6 Capital Funding LLC which the New York Court of Appeals recently agreed to hear. The crux of the plaintiff’s arguments has been that defendant’s purchase of future receivables was actually a usurious loan. The plaintiff was unsuccessful at both the trial court level and appellate level with their case and so appealed to the highest possible court in New York, the Court of Appeals. On February 9, the motion for leave to appeal was granted.
A Quick Analysis of Bank Data? Kuboon!
February 8, 2023
Accessing a small business borrower’s bank statement data is nothing new but Kuboon, not to be confused with kaboom, gives the whole experience an upgrade. A lender can embed Kuboon’s technology into their existing CRM with a simple line of code and be up and running in no time.
According to Kuboon VP of Sales Brysen Partridge, the technology doesn’t necessarily compete with universal tools like Plaid and Finicity because Kuboon actually uses them too.
“So we compare differently because our engines are far more advanced,” said Partridge, “[The big aggregators] give you a small out of the box engine of just giving the transactions and then you have to come up with your dev team to try and filter out and fix and categorize all those transactions and make them into something useful. We do all that for you…”
Partridge said that’s far from everything. “It’s not just bank details,” he said. “We have payroll and ID data. We have other sources that are coming in soon that will provide a ‘complete integrated intelligence.'”
Recognizing that not everyone will embed it, Partridge said that Kuboon can also be used as its own standalone CRM, a feature they call Kuboon Lobby and that many clients choose to use it this way.
SoFi Pondering But Not Ready to Become Small Business Lender
February 8, 2023
“When the pandemic first started back in 2020, March time period, we were inundated with tons of small, medium businesses coming on to SoFi and trying to apply for PPP loans,” said Anthony Noto, CEO of SoFi in the company’s most recent quarterly earnings call. “We clearly don’t have small, medium lending. Now that we have a banking license, that is an area that we could go into, but we didn’t at that point in time.”
Alerted to the possible opportunity, however, SoFi leveraged its Lantern technology during covid to send interested business borrowers to a marketplace of lenders, which produced favorable results.
“The demand, as a result of that, led us to realize that many of our members are operating small, medium businesses and that we could serve them on the commercial side as well,” said Noto.
Nevertheless, Noto said that small business lending was not on their agenda for 2023 unless there was a big economic recovery this year. But if and when it decided to go into the market, it feels confident that its cost of capital would be of great advantage. As a bank, SoFi can leverage customer deposits.
“So if we get to the point that our deposits are significantly higher than they are today, we can deploy them in many, many other ways to drive a great return for the company,” Noto said.
Another advantage is the organic interest in working with SoFi to begin with.
“If you follow us on any social media, it’s a constant request that we get from people to launch small, medium business checking and savings, small, medium business lending,” Noto noted.
The Merchant Cash Advance Journey from Broker to Funder
February 7, 2023
As merchant cash advances have become a popular financing option for small businesses in recent years, it has quickly become obvious how lucrative it can be to make the transition from working the phones to working the deals.
The transition from broker to funder can provide significant benefits: by becoming a funder, you have the opportunity to control the entire process from start to finish. Driving the deals, you have the opportunity to make more money, and can establish relationships with banks and payment processing systems that align with your business goals. You can choose a CRM system that best fits your needs and invest in a strong legal and accounting infrastructure to ensure compliance and accountability. Additionally, as a funder, you have the ability to diversify your portfolio and make informed decisions on the types of deals you want to fund, which can lead to higher returns and more stable growth.
While many brokers have the gift of the gab and expertise to sell the advances, they may not have the necessary knowledge of systems and processes in place to manage the risk and operational aspects of the business to go to the next level. Additionally, funders, more than brokers, have the relationships with banks, CRM systems, collection firms, and legal entities that are necessary to run a successful merchant cash advance funding business. The lack of these critical components can limit the growth potential of a broker.
The evolution from a broker to a funder is not just a matter of expanding the business, but it requires a complete overhaul of the systems, processes, and legal frameworks. In this article, let’s explore the key steps that a broker needs to take to become a successful merchant cash advance funder.
Step 1: Having The Right Bank Account
Having a proper bank account is the first step towards becoming a merchant cash advance funder.
Traditional banks, such as Chase and Bank of America, are not built for the rapidly brave new world of financing options, and instead cater to the old models. If they see (what they deem to be) ‘irregular’ incoming and outgoing payment just as you begin offering your first few deals, they can cause you a lot of stress, and even shut your account.
Researching all the options available before you begin funding deals is crucial to build up your business and to avoid stress down the road.
Step 2: Finding The Best ACH Payment Processor
The best way to accept the daily payments owed to you is by working with an ACH payment processor that understands the MCA space. While some traditional banks do offer ACH ‘pulling’ for free, their service is often tied to the amount you have sitting in your account at the bank, which means it’s not working for you to make more. For example, some stipulate that your account needs to have three times the amount that you’re planning to pull daily, just sitting there. So if you’re pulling $200,000 a day, now you have to have $600,000 just sitting there in reserve, which you can’t use to fund other deals you could be making money on.
Instead, finding ACH payment processors that specifically understand the business and your needs will free you up to strive to collect as much as you can, every single day. While it might cost you a little bit, you have the option to now make that calculation of whether it’s better to have free ACHs or have the money available to fund deals and make money off of. A wise man would tell you the latter is the right way to go.
Step 3: Picking A CRM System
A CRM system is an essential tool for tracking the deals, payments, and collections. There are about 8-10 mainstream CRM systems that cater to merchant cash advance funders, and the choice of the CRM system depends on the volume of deals you fund, the presence of syndicators, and the type of deals you fund.
Pick a system that best serves your needs: how it accounts for sub deals and tranches, whether it helps you identify the best and worst performing deals, and if it generates the reports you need to make the most informed choices for your business going forward.
Step 4: Setting Up Your Legal Framework
Setting up a legal framework for contracts is an important step in the journey from a broker to a funder. A proper legal framework ensures that the contracts are enforceable and protects your interests.
It is worth consulting with a lawyer familiar with merchant cash advance to help you prepare thorough contracts for the businesses you advance, your ISO’s and brokers, to ensure you are secure from any attempts to avoid payment and backdooring on your own deals.
Step 5: Collections
In an ideal world, every deal a MCA business funds would get paid pack easily and smoothly, but frequently, that is not the case. Too often, business owners prove why they needed the advance in the first place, and repeat the mistakes and bad habit that puts them in a perilous financial position once again.
If they don’t pay you, your business will quickly begin to suffer and face increasing cash flow problems if you don’t handle it quickly, so having a reliable collection system is crucial for the success of a merchant cash advance funder. It’s good to ensure you understand your options to give yourself the best chance of recovering what you’re owed, including working with a third-part collections firm. The choice of a collection firm depends on the success rate and the level of support provided. A good collection firm should have a well-prepared collection attorney, provide timely support and have a strategy to collect on delinquent merchant cash advances.
Step 6: Accounting
Proper accounting is essential for tracking the overall health and viability of your company. It’s also especially important if you have a partnership or investment in place.
Better Accounting Solutions has been the leading accounting firm in the MCA industry for over a decade, and seen how successful a company can be when all their books are in order and the tremendous pressure and stress caused when it’s not.
Working with an accountant that is familiar with the industry and systems will help you ensure your business is legally compliant, trending in the right direction, and that all deals are in a good place.
Step 7: Lead Sourcing
You’ve set up the business, now you need customers!
There are several ways to find people and businesses who could use a merchant cash advance from your new business. You could reach out to family and friends, research and cold-contact people online or work with lead-generation agencies who will send you lists of hot prospects. Additionally, if you’ve already done all the previous steps listed here, then you can speak to the people you’re already familiar with in the industry to point prospects your way. For example, Better Accounting Solutions has drawn on our years of experience in the industry to connect new funders with brokers we know and trust.
Typically, if you’re a broker becoming a funder, than you already have the relationships with people who can direct customers to your new venture, but I always advise our clients to avoid backdooring or doing something with even the slightest inference of unethical business practices; its bad karma and can only hurt you down the line.
So there you have it, the seven steps of going from broker to funder, and taking your merchant cash advance journey to the next level. Wishing you the best of luck!
Lendica Integrates with Shopify and Salesforce
February 7, 2023
Shopify and Salesforce users will now be able to access loan products through Lendica. Now, how does it work? Lendica gives their software to Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and once installed, their customers will have access to Lendica’s funding products (PayLater, FundNow, and DrawDown).
PayLater is similar to how BNPL works, allowing vendors to delay their payments to a weekly basis. FundNow resembles an accounts receivable product where merchants can get paid up to 90 days ahead of the seller terms offered from their wholesale account. DrawDown is working capital that allows businesses to borrow against their future cash flow. These three products can be integrated into Shopify and Salesforce with an embedded funding or pay later button.
“We’re giving this tool to these ISVs so that their customers can instantly access our product and then learn about our other funding tools,” said Jared Shulman, CEO at Lendica.
“The most important piece, and this is kind of the excitement of Salesforce and Shopify is that what Lendica was doing is building this missing infrastructure in the small business lending space…,” said Shulman. “And what that is, is this standardized lending language, we call it the Lendica token that allows any financial institution to get a complete picture of a business, and then a point of reference on what that picture means.”
Lendica has experienced strong adoption of its products. According to Shulman, its PayLater product alone has garnered more than 10% growth month over month.
New York Commercial Disclosure Regulations Approved
February 7, 2023With permission to be republished from Leasing News
Ken Greene is an attorney and Editor of Leasing News. To contact Ken, email: ken@kengreenelaw.com.
On February 1, 2023, the New York State Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) adopted final regulations related to its new Commercial Finance Disclosure Law (“CFDL”) found in Article 8, Sections 801-811 of the New York Financial Services Law.
As a reminder, here are the major provisions of the CFDL:
- The law only applies to transactions which are less than $2.5 million;
- Banks and similar financial institutions are exempt;
- True (operating) leases are exempt;
- Commercial transactions secured by real property are exempt;
- Anyone who makes no more than 5 transactions in New York in a 12 month period is exempt;
- Certain vehicle dealers (for transactions which exceed $50k) are exempt;
- Disclosures must be made at the time of extending a specific offer; and
- Generally, the disclosures must include the amount of financing, APR, repayment amounts, term, finance charge, and description of collateral, if any.
Pursuant to the 53 pages of regulation, the CFDL:
- Applies only to transactions where the recipient is in New York;
- Exemptions extend to all majority owned subsidiaries of banks (because they are subject to consolidated oversight);
- Does not require disclosure of broker compensation in the disclosure forms, but still requires disclosure of broker fees in writing;
- Requires that APR be calculated in accordance with either the United States Rule or Appendix J of Reg Z;
- Allows for a digital signature by the recipient on the disclosure forms;
- Has font, rows and column requirements virtually identical to California law;
- Limits the duties of brokers to transmittal of disclosures and providing financer with evidence of transmission. There does not appear to be a document retention requirement like the one in California.
The New York regulations are quite similar to the California rules.
One important difference between the two is the $2.5 million threshold for New York versus the $500k threshold in California. Another major distinction between the two is the express inclusion of bank subsidiaries in the New York law, whereas the California regulations are unclear on this issue.
The compliance date for these regulations is six months after publication of the Notice of Adoption in the State Register. That appears to have happened already, so prepare for compliance on or before August 1, 2023.
This article is presented by the Law Office of Kenneth Charles Greene. All copyrightable text, the selection, arrangement, and presentation of all materials (including information in the public domain), and the overall design of this presentation are the property of the Law Office of Kenneth Charles Greene. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to download and reprint materials from this article for the purpose of viewing, reading, and retaining for reference. Any other copying, distribution, retransmission, or modification of information or materials from this article, whether in electronic or hard copy form, without the express prior written permission of Kenneth C. Greene, is strictly prohibited. The materials available from this article are for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. You should contact your attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. Use of and access to these materials does not create an attorney-client relationship between the Law Office of Kenneth Charles Greene and the user or viewer. The opinions expressed herein are the opinions of the individual author.
Mulligan Funding Closes $100 Million Securitization
February 6, 2023February 6, 2023 – SAN DIEGO – Mulligan Funding, one of the largest providers of SMB access to working capital in the country, today announced the closing of a $100 million asset-backed securitization (ABS). This new financing continues a history of impressive growth for the company, even during difficult market conditions. As Mulligan Funding’s first securitization, the senior bonds achieved an A rating from Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA), the highest rating they will award a first-time issuer in this asset class. The facility has a 3-year revolving period and is expandable to $500 Million.
Mulligan Funding, known for its commitment to full transparency and its exceptional customer service, started in 2008 in the midst of the financial crisis, when traditional banks began to pull back from the small and medium-sized business lending market. The private, family-owned business, which has so far provided access to over $1bn in working capital to its customers, is honored to have achieved the noteworthy milestone of closing its first securitization.
David Leibowitz, chief executive officer at Mulligan Funding, shares, “This is a really significant step forward for us. It adds materially to the funding we require in order to continue on the path of responsible growth to which we remain committed. We’re particularly pleased that the ratings afforded to these notes by KBRA, constitute an affirmation of the disciplined approach to credit management which has always been at the core of our business strategy.”
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About Mulligan Funding
Headquartered in San Diego and named on the prestigious Best Places to Work SoCal 2022 List by Best Companies Group, Mulligan Funding serves as a leading provider of working capital ($5K – $2M) to the small and medium-sized businesses that fuel our country. Since 2008, we have prided ourselves on our collaborative, innovative, and customer-focused approach. Through our unique ability to combine technology, a human touch, and unwavering integrity, we help those we serve bring their dreams to life with our people-first culture.
