Industry News
Catching Up With Kalamata
September 18, 2025
Kalamata Capital Group is continuing to fund in Texas through one of its affiliated entities, the company confirms. Kalamata, which recently upsized its 2024 securitization by 25% with notes expandable up to $500 million, offers a variety of funding products to small businesses around the United States. A new law that recently went into effect in Texas has prompted Kalamata and companies like theirs to get the word out to their partners about any applicable adjustments.
More front and center for the company, however, is the introduction and evolution of Kalamata Cash, its in-house proprietary software.
“We went live with everything, including our syndicator profiles and access to the outside world as well, and that’s been a really exciting development for the company,” said Brandon Laks, co-president at Kalamata, “because instead of licensing software, which the software we were on was great before, it gives us the ability to roadmap exactly what we want to do.”
Kalamata, for example, is 100% broker-driven, and they can custom-tailor the process to best suit their relationships.
“Our brokers can come in and see live calculators,” Laks said, “so when they submit a deal and we send an offer, they can get a live view of what steps are outstanding, they can play around with the sliders and choose their offers.”
And there’s a lot more on the horizon that they’re integrating with and adding on.
Guggenheim Securities served as sole structuring advisor and the sole initial purchaser of the notes in the Kalamata securitization deal. At the time of the announcement, Laks said, “The access to additional capital will allow Kalamata to continue supporting Small Businesses and invest more capital in proprietary technology to stay at the forefront of the small business financing industry.”
MoneyThumb and deBanked Release Survey Findings on Fraud Trends Among Small Business Funders
September 16, 2025Document Falsification Emerges as Top Concern
San Diego, Calif. (September 16, 2025) – A new study conducted by MoneyThumb, a leader in automated document evaluation and fraud detection solutions, in partnership with deBanked, a leading publication for MCAs, reveals an alarming trend in the small business lending sector: fraud is not only on the rise but is significantly impacting the cost of doing business, especially for smaller funders operating in an increasingly uncertain economic environment.
As small businesses continue to grapple with supply chain pressures, shifting tariffs, and a volatile economic outlook, lenders are seeing a direct correlation between economic strain and elevated fraud risk. When margins are tight and working capital is harder to secure, the incentive for applicants to falsify documents, or even attempt synthetic identity fraud—increases. Most of this fraud cannot be detected visually, making traditional underwriting processes insufficient on their own. This hidden risk doesn’t just weigh on the funder, it ultimately raises the cost of loans for all borrowers, including honest small business owners.
The survey polled a broad range of Merchant Cash Advance (MCA) providers, funders, and alternative lenders to assess how often they encounter tampered documents or fraudulent information during the application process. Respondents ranged from small firms processing fewer than 10 applications per month to large institutions handling over 500.
Key findings include:
- Nearly 54% of respondents report that 2–10% of the applications they receive contain fraud.
- Nearly 60% are “very concerned” about fraud.
- A staggering 90% cite document falsification or forgery as the most pressing issue.
- More than half of respondents say fraud has increased year over year.
- Smaller funders are disproportionately affected: funders processing fewer than 100 financial applications per month report fraud in 11.8% of applications—more than double the rate reported by larger funders (5.6%).
- 88% of funders are still reviewing documents manually, which wastes countless hours per month, is prone to human error and increases labor costs.
“Fraud is evolving just as quickly as the economy is shifting,” said Ryan Campbell, CEO of MoneyThumb. “In a time when rising tariffs and inflationary pressure are already squeezing small businesses, fraudulent applications add another layer of risk that funders can’t afford to ignore.”
Sean Murray, Founder of deBanked, added: “Relying solely on manual review simply isn’t sustainable. The funders who embrace intelligent automation will not only reduce losses but also serve more businesses—faster and more fairly.”
Up to seven percent of revenue, billions of dollars and thousands of hours are lost every year due to fraudulent applications in the lending industry. MoneyThumb’s Thumbprint® patented technology leverages AI and advanced algorithms to identify subtle discrepancies and inconsistencies that can’t be seen manually. Over the last year, Thumbprint® has reviewed more than 10M statements and identified over 500,000 fraudulent or altered documents.
As macroeconomic uncertainty continues into Q4 2025, the report underscores the need for technology-driven solutions that can scale fraud detection without sacrificing underwriting speed or accuracy.
About MoneyThumb
MoneyThumb is an advanced automation software solution that streamlines the lending underwriting process by converting bank statements instantly into actionable data. By exponentially increasing efficiency, accuracy and the detection of fraud – MoneyThumb empowers lenders and accountants to make faster, more informed and accurate decisions. MoneyThumb is headquartered in Encinitas, California, and serves customers globally. For more information visit www.moneythumb.com.
About deBanked
deBanked is a leading publication covering non-bank finance, alternative lending, and fintech since 2010. It is a trusted source for insights, news, and trends in the MCA and small business lending space.
Media Contact:
Tracy Rubin
JCUTLER media group
tracy@jcmg.com
SOLD OUT: Sponsorships to B2B Finance Expo in Las Vegas Have Sold Out
September 5, 2025The opportunity to sponsor B2B Finance Expo in Las Vegas this October is now gone but there’s still time to be a part of the commercial finance industry’s biggest event in Las Vegas by making sure you’re registered to attend. Taking place on October 28-29 at the Wynn, B2B Finance Expo will once again bring together leaders from Small Business Lending, Fintech, Real Estate Lending, Revenue Based Financing, SBA Lending, and beyond.
The room block is also full but the Wynn may still be honoring the discount code so be sure to take advantage now since it could shut off at any moment. Book Your Room Here.
deBanked Free Open Bar on Long Island
August 24, 2025deBanked is hosting a FREE OPEN BAR for brokers and folks that work in the small business finance industry on Thursday, September 11 from 7-9pm at Tap Room in Huntington. Tap Room is located on New York Avenue right across the street from the Paramount. You can register here. Entry may be conditional upon capacity inside.
Business Finance Companies on Inc 5000 List in 2025
August 12, 2025Here’s where small business finance companies rank on the Inc 5000 list for 2025 (and if we’ve missed you, email info@debanked.com):
| Ranking | Company | 3-Year % Growth |
| 15 | Parafin | 9594 |
| 206 | businessloans.com | 1862 |
| 669 | Pinnacle Funding | 626 |
| 831 | SBG Funding | 508 |
| 1215 | Essential Funding Group | 359 |
| 1240 | Clara Capital | 352 |
| 1417 | Backd | 306 |
| 1705 | Kapitus | 256 |
| 1719 | Channel | 255 |
| 1756 | Fundible | 248 |
| 2027 | 4 Pillar Funding | 214 |
| 2117 | Biz2Credit | 203 |
| 2293 | Byzfunder | 187 |
| 2671 | Critical Financing | 156 |
| 3081 | Lendzi | 131 |
| 3226 | eCapital | 124 |
| 3508 | ApplePie Capital | 111 |
| 3545 | SellersFi | 109 |
| 3901 | Splash Advance | 95 |
| 3973 | Fora Financial | 92 |
| 3993 | Capital Infusion | 91 |
| 4076 | Expansion Capital Group | 88 |
| 4162 | Shore Funding Solutions | 85 |
| 4206 | Direct Funding Now | 83 |
| 4712 | ROK Financial | 63 |
Adding Event Connections to DailyFunder
August 12, 2025MY BIG PET PEEVES WITH “EVENT APPS” ARE:
1. 95% of users stop using them after the event is over.
2. Most are white labeled from a third party with no customizable solutions.
3. They are generally zero-sum in that everyone can see you’re going or no one can. People want to choose their own visibility.
4. If a boss buys 10 tickets under their name for their team, it makes it hard for the individual team members to be able to access the app because their info isn’t in the system.
5. There are generally no moderation capabilities to limit or stop abuse.
6. Redundancy.
We had a deBanked Events App (2018 – 2023 white labeled), a deBanked App (2015 – 2017 white labeled), and a DailyFunder App (2013 – 2017 white labeled), but we recently rebooted a DailyFunder App only.
Why DailyFunder? With 17,000+ members, 3 million+ annual page views, and an average session > 10 minutes, it seems the most logical starting point to tackle point 1 above, which is keeping a party going 24/7 instead of just a few days before an event and never again right after. We’ve moved development in-house, no more white labels. We can put events in there whether they’re affiliated with us or not. You can let people know if you’re going or not. You can dm other people that plan to go. You can follow up with them afterwards. You can see the sponsors. We can put video content in there like tech companies that demoed or the interviews on the red carpets. No, you won’t see the whole attendee list, but you’ll be able to see those that want other people to connect with them at each one. You can use your real name or be pseudonymous. We can remove fakers. You can post on the forum. You can see what people are saying. It doesn’t all end when the event ends. You can see news headlines from deBanked and other video content we choose to put on there.
This is a work-in-progress but currently live in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. If you have ideas or suggestions, email them to webmaster@dailyfunder.com. There’s some bugs we’re aware of. You must have a DailyFunder account already to log in. The registration process is still only on the website but we’ll change that.
Some thoughts are being able to add events like a Title sponsor’s cocktail party, a related golf-outing, etc. People are always asking which company is having a party after an event or before.
So instead of having to go on the forum, facebook groups, linkedin, or the whatsapp chats to be like “yo, xyz is happening.” or “who’s going?” we can just add it in here and then everyone can see them in one place to communicate with each other about them if they want to.
Open to suggestions.
Bitty Continuing to Perform Well in Q2 2025
August 11, 2025“Our investment in Bitty continued to perform well in the 2025,” said Todd Schwartz, CEO of OppFi, during the Q2 earnings call. “The business continues to add accretive profitability and cash flow to OppFi. Bitty is doing a great job utilizing technology to improve operations and the customer experience, identifying additional growth opportunities in new credit segments and capitalizing on the continued supply/demand imbalance in the small business lending space.”
OppFi holds a 35% stake in Bitty. Their pro-rata share of Bitty’s first half 2025 earnings was significant to their bottom-line.
NerdWallet: ‘AI Answers Are Taking Organic Search Clicks Away’
August 11, 2025NerdWallet, which operates one of the largest online small business lending marketplaces in the US, is experiencing the competitive pressures of AI in real-time. For example, the company has long depended on organic search traffic to generate customers, but Google’s search results now serve more than just links.
“I’d say the story hasn’t changed much since last quarter. Organic search is still pretty challenged,” said NerdWallet CEO Tim Chen during the Q2 earnings call. “What’s happened incrementally is we’ve seen AI-overviews roll out to a much broader swath of queries in recent months, which is resulting in more people getting answers without ever clicking through to websites.”
The company revealed that SMB products revenue of $25 million was down 4% year-over-year, “primarily due to pressures in organic search traffic.”
NerdWallet, however, has also noticed early signs that LLMs are generating referrals for them.
“What’s probably less obvious is that people who click through from LLMs have materially higher intent to transact than people who click through from search engines,” Chen said. “So, while encouraging in terms of that being a new growth channel, it’s still pretty small.”
