What is a Merchant Cash Advance?

The merchant cash advance (MCA) is one type of financing that permits companies to sell a percentage of future sales for a cash payment immediately. The funding will provide your business with cash to pay for operational costs and grow. There are several options to repay the financing line, depending on the kind of business.

In the beginning, merchant cash advances were made to fund future credit cards sales. So, the most frequent customers were restaurants and retailers. The product has grown to the point that cash advance companies can finance future sales, no matter the payment method.

What is the process for merchant Cash Advances to Work?

Most cash advance merchants believe that their transactions purchase future sales, not being a loan. To decide on the amount of funding to provide, finance firms examine your credit card sales, commercial sales, bank statements, and other data. The reports they receive perform your sales and give them a glimpse of the future sales potential.

The determination of the amount of funding

You are able to receive the amount of cash by calculating a mix of your earnings and perceived risk to the account.  In anywhere Cash advance companies generally offer loans from 80%-150 percent of your monthly revenue following these criteria.

 

The amount you have to pay is calculated by multiplying your financing amount by the “return percentage.” Return factors can vary between 1.09 up to 1.50. For instance, an investment of $100,000 with a payback ratio of 1.09 will require $109,000 in a set period. Typically, the time for repayment is between 3 and 15 months.

The actual financing portion for the deal is straightforward. The funds will be deposited into your account when the financing has been accepted.

Repaying the money

In various easy methods, The company may repay the cash advance business. If you have financed credit card sales, then you can pay the company that invests it back with a number of its daily deals.

The “retrieval rate,” can vary between 8% and 13 percent, the basis of your daily sales. This is repaid through different processing by using your credit processor.

 

If you’re not financing credit card purchases, the repayment process is done by allowing the cash advances business to withdraw money from your bank account using an ATM system (direct withdrawal). In this way, certain merchant cash advances are known as ACH advances (or simply “cash advances”). While most finance companies will debit your bank account each working day, some debit your account every week.

 

Disadvantages/Advantages of Merchant Cash Advances

Sometimes Cash advances face some difficulties which come from the merchants. The expense of financing is considered the highest disadvantage of this method. In the previous section, we have already elaborated that This method is costly. After careful analysis businesses must take into account this method and only if they’re in a position to enlarge their company and repay the lender.

There are times when businesses face significant issues if they cannot pay back the merchant cash advance. Small businesses will often decide to take an additional cash advance if this occurs. They are hoping to use the second cash advance to fulfill the obligations to pay for the previous one and run the business. However, this only moves the issue further into the future…

The same situation can happen repeatedly. The business owner is forced to seek a new loan to repay the previous ones. It is clear the direction this is taking. The process of obtaining several cash advances can be known as “stacking” and is extremely risky. It is often the cause of serious financial difficulties or failure. The only way to solve this is to repay the cash advances that are not being paid back or via consolidation with an even better facility or using an alternative method. The most efficient alternative is to stay out of this scenario entirely.

Another issue with the cash advance is that they are an unassailable value, similar to the term loan. Fixed value products are generally not the most effective option to address cash flow issues. If you are experiencing cash flow issues and require a solution, an MCA could be a temporary solution, but you’ll likely have to refinance your line at least a couple of times. In general, cash flow issues can be solved with the revolving financing option, like the line of credit.

 

However, Some undoubted advantages have this product, Such as it generally is taken out quickly, which most of the time needed only a few days.  Additionally, the merchant cash advance is more genuine than getting an unsecured business loan. If your business has an urgency for financing then these advantages make the MCA an impressive option. 

 

With the possible advantages and drawbacks of this option, consider speaking with an accountant or other expert to make sure you are making the right choice.

The majority of the program for factoring is based on the revolving lines of finance. They are linked to your sales, and they increase if sales rise. Find out how to use factoring and. Merchant Cash advances for business.

Speak to a specialist today!

Speak to one of our trained specialists to better understand what options we have for your business.