Tuesday, January 10, 2012
AmeriMerchant - One Of The Oldest & Largest Merchant Cash Advance Providers Celebrates Its Ten Year Anniversary
AmeriMerchant, one of the oldest and largest merchant cash advance providers in the marketplace, is celebrating its ten year anniversary. During its history, AmeriMerchant has become a best-of-class brand in the merchant cash advance marketplace. For more information on AmeriMerchant's ten year anniversary, click here.
Monday, October 3, 2011
Vantiv and AmeriMerchant To Offer Working Capital Solution To A Potential 400,000 Merchants
Vantiv (formerly Fifth Third Processing Solutions) along with National Processing Company (NPC), a Vantiv subsidiary, announced today they will be offering a merchant cash advance solution provided by AmeriMerchant to their nearly 400,000 merchants they support. For more information on this merchant cash advance / working capital partnership, please click here.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
North American Merchant Advance Association (NAMAA) announces New Members And Officers
The North American Merchant Advance Association (NAMAA), a 501c non-profit industry association that provides guidance and helps influence and shape the merchant cash advance industry through leadership, education and the sharing of information, announced today the addition of four new members to its organization as well as the election of new officers. For more information on this story, click here.
NAMAA is the only industry voice for the merchant cash advance industry and currently represents 80%+ of the largest merchant cash advance providers in the industry. NAMAA also offers risk management tools to allow merchant cash advance providers to reduce their default rates from merchants that have previously defaulted with other merchant cash advance providers.
Note: David Goldin, editor of this blog is also the President of the North American Merchant Advance Association.
NAMAA is the only industry voice for the merchant cash advance industry and currently represents 80%+ of the largest merchant cash advance providers in the industry. NAMAA also offers risk management tools to allow merchant cash advance providers to reduce their default rates from merchants that have previously defaulted with other merchant cash advance providers.
Note: David Goldin, editor of this blog is also the President of the North American Merchant Advance Association.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
First Data Becomes An Approved Processor Of AmeriMerchant Merchant Cash Advance Program
First Data, one of the largest merchant processors in the world, has entered into an agreement with AmeriMerchant to become an approved processor of the AmeriMerchant merchant cash advance program. This deal will expand AmeriMerchant's market share by allowing First Data ISOs to offer the AmeriMerchant merchant cash advance program to their merchants. For more information on this story, see the story in The Green Sheet or ISO & Agent
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
First Data SpendTrend Report Positive Indicator For Merchant Cash Advance Revenue?
The following information can be seen as positive news for the merchant cash advance industry.
Nation's Restaurant News is reporting that First Data released in their October 2010 "SpendTrend" report that "Consumer credit- and debit-card spending in restaurants and bars grew by 9.5 percent in October year-over-year, the highest growth in more than 18 months."
Being that First Data has a huge amount of merchants to collect data from, this is a very positive indication that perhaps consumer spending could be on the rise for at least restaurants. This information holds well for the merchant cash advance industry as the amount of money a restaurant and/or bar can qualify for is based on their monthly historical credit / debit card processing totals.
Nation's Restaurant News is reporting that First Data released in their October 2010 "SpendTrend" report that "Consumer credit- and debit-card spending in restaurants and bars grew by 9.5 percent in October year-over-year, the highest growth in more than 18 months."
Being that First Data has a huge amount of merchants to collect data from, this is a very positive indication that perhaps consumer spending could be on the rise for at least restaurants. This information holds well for the merchant cash advance industry as the amount of money a restaurant and/or bar can qualify for is based on their monthly historical credit / debit card processing totals.
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Looking To Acquire Merchant Cash Advance Providers and Merchant Cash Advance Resellers
If you are a merchant cash advance provider (fund your own merchant cash advance deals) or a reseller of merchant cash advances with an office, sales staff, etc. that caters to the US or Canadian marketplace, AmeriMerchant is currently seeking potential acquisitions in the marketplace. If you are interested, please contact me directly at dg@amerimerchant.com. All inquiries will be kept confidential.
-David
NOTE: The editor of this blog is also the President & CEO of AmeriMerchant.
-David
NOTE: The editor of this blog is also the President & CEO of AmeriMerchant.
Monday, August 2, 2010
AmeriMerchant Consolidates With Leading Canadian Merchant Cash Advance Provider
AmeriMerchant (http://www.amerimerchant.com) one of the oldest and largest merchant cash advance providers in the United States and CanaFunding (http://www.canafunding.com), one of the best established merchant cash advance providers in Canada, have announced a merger of their operations that will allow AmeriMerchant's US-based sales channels to offer a merchant cash advance product to the Canadian marketplace.
For more information, visit the story in the Financial Post, a Canadian newspaper.
Editor's Note: The Editor of this blog is also the CEO of AmeriMerchant.
For more information, visit the story in the Financial Post, a Canadian newspaper.
Editor's Note: The Editor of this blog is also the CEO of AmeriMerchant.
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Merchant Cash Advance Industry Update
I've received feedback from many people inside and outside of the merchant cash advance industry asking when I think the merchant cash advance industry will continue to expand again. There are obvious signs that there aren't enough good deals out there when many providers are marketing "they specialize in deals that no one else will take."
I think while we keep reading that "banks aren't lending to small businesses", I don't think that is the whole picture, I think that an important aspect that people are overlooking is "do business owners want to borrow right now?" Whether it's a traditional business loan or an alternative financing solution such as a merchant cash advance or factoring, businesses don't appear to be wanting to take on as much obligations as they have in the past.
Until the macroeconomics change where unemployment goes down and consumer spending goes up - why would the average business owner in July need money to buy more inventory when their current inventory isn't selling? Why would the average business owner open another location in this environment (compared to the % of owners that did this say 4 years ago)?
Until the macroeconomics change, I don't think the demand level for business owners to take on additional obligations, including alternative financing products such as a merchant cash advance, will increase substantially compared to previous years.
I think this will also put pressure on some merchant cash advance providers, especially ones that don't have substantial capital to ride out this storm, to start funding deals they shouldn't be funding, etc. which leads to a bigger disaster down the road as many merchant cash advance providers (most who aren't still in business) learned a couple of years ago.
I think while we keep reading that "banks aren't lending to small businesses", I don't think that is the whole picture, I think that an important aspect that people are overlooking is "do business owners want to borrow right now?" Whether it's a traditional business loan or an alternative financing solution such as a merchant cash advance or factoring, businesses don't appear to be wanting to take on as much obligations as they have in the past.
Until the macroeconomics change where unemployment goes down and consumer spending goes up - why would the average business owner in July need money to buy more inventory when their current inventory isn't selling? Why would the average business owner open another location in this environment (compared to the % of owners that did this say 4 years ago)?
Until the macroeconomics change, I don't think the demand level for business owners to take on additional obligations, including alternative financing products such as a merchant cash advance, will increase substantially compared to previous years.
I think this will also put pressure on some merchant cash advance providers, especially ones that don't have substantial capital to ride out this storm, to start funding deals they shouldn't be funding, etc. which leads to a bigger disaster down the road as many merchant cash advance providers (most who aren't still in business) learned a couple of years ago.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Merchant Cash Advance Featured In American Express Business Card Holder Article
American Express publishes a series of articles for its business card holders. One recent article entitled, Alternative financing: Where to turn when the bank says ‘No’ by Elizabeth Wasserman lists the merchant cash advance as alternative financing solution when the banks say "no" to a business.
The article quotes AmeriMerchant and myself as follows:
A handful of independent finance companies will give merchants a lump sum upfront in exchange for a share of their future credit-card sales. Different than a loan or lease arrangement, a merchant cash advance is based on a business’ monthly credit-card sales history, says David Goldin, CEO of AmeriMerchant and a founding member of the North American Merchant Advance Association. "It's a buy-and-sell transaction," Goldin says. "We buy $10,000 in future credit card sales today for $8,000 and we get a specified percentage of future sales from customers."
Editor's Note: David Goldin is the President & CEO of AmeriMerchant and the author of the merchant cash advance blog.
The article quotes AmeriMerchant and myself as follows:
A handful of independent finance companies will give merchants a lump sum upfront in exchange for a share of their future credit-card sales. Different than a loan or lease arrangement, a merchant cash advance is based on a business’ monthly credit-card sales history, says David Goldin, CEO of AmeriMerchant and a founding member of the North American Merchant Advance Association. "It's a buy-and-sell transaction," Goldin says. "We buy $10,000 in future credit card sales today for $8,000 and we get a specified percentage of future sales from customers."
Editor's Note: David Goldin is the President & CEO of AmeriMerchant and the author of the merchant cash advance blog.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
North American Merchant Advance Association Announces Merchant Cash Advance Best Practices
While merchant cash advances have been around for quite some time, like many industries it has seen its share of scrupulous and unscrupulos providers. The North American Merchant Advance Association (NAMAA) recently released it's recommended Best Practices for the Merchant Cash Advance Industry.
As a founding member of NAMAA, I commend our co-members which make up the majority of the players in the merchant cash advance industry for coming together to ensure the merchant cash advance product is sold and executed properly so that it helps the merchant and doesn't hurt the merchant.
For those merchants reading this blog, proceed with caution when doing business with a non-NAMAA merchant cash advance provider. NAMAA members who bear the association logo on their website have taken the time, capital and commitment to ensure their offering is made in a standup way and helps them stand out from certain providers in the industry who have used tactics that the industry and the association look down upon.
Buyer beware, stick with a NAMAA member and look for the following logo:
As a founding member of NAMAA, I commend our co-members which make up the majority of the players in the merchant cash advance industry for coming together to ensure the merchant cash advance product is sold and executed properly so that it helps the merchant and doesn't hurt the merchant.
For those merchants reading this blog, proceed with caution when doing business with a non-NAMAA merchant cash advance provider. NAMAA members who bear the association logo on their website have taken the time, capital and commitment to ensure their offering is made in a standup way and helps them stand out from certain providers in the industry who have used tactics that the industry and the association look down upon.
Buyer beware, stick with a NAMAA member and look for the following logo:
Monday, April 5, 2010
Merchant Cash Advance Partnership Between United Bank Card and AmeriMerchant
I am proud to announce that United Bank Card, Inc. (UBC), ranked by the Nilson Report as one of the largest payment processors in the United States, and AmeriMerchant, one of the oldest and largest providers of merchant cash advances, announce their partnership to offer working capital to both potential and existing United Bank Card merchants. For more information on this partnership, click here.
This partnership will allow United Bank Card's 100,000+ merchants access to working capital in a environment that can be extremely challenging for small businesses seeking a traditional loan product from the bank.
This partnership will allow United Bank Card's 100,000+ merchants access to working capital in a environment that can be extremely challenging for small businesses seeking a traditional loan product from the bank.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Merchant Cash Advances Weren't Around in 1942
Merchant Cash Advances weren't around in 1942, but business bank loans were. According to today's Wall Street Journal article, Lending Falls at Epic Pace, US banks posted last year their sharpest decline in lending since 1942. Does anyone see a merchant cash advance opportunity for all those businesses in 2010?
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Merchant Cash Advance Demand
Many merchant cash advance providers are indicating there is less demand for the product the last few months compared to this time period last year and the year before. There are several factors that can be responsible for this including many merchant cash advance providers were funding deals in the past that they would not fund today (and paid a very hefty price for doing so, namely going out of business). I think one of the key reasons which I have pointed out in the past is there also has to be an increase in business owner confidence for there to be an increase in demand for the merchant cash advance product.
The NY Times had an interesting article yesterday, entitled Businesses Reduced Inventories in December which further validates my theory, that if business owners don't have confidence in the economy, they are going to market / advertise less, hire less and stock lower inventories.
The article indicates, "The weakness in inventory rebuilding in December was an indication that businesses, still struggling to emerge from the deepest recession in decades, are not yet confident enough in rising sales to begin rebuilding stockpiles on a sustained basis."
As the CEO of, AmeriMerchant, one of the oldest and largest merchant cash advance providers in the space, I can tell you that a very common reason why merchants turn to alternative financing such as the merchant cash advance product is to stock up on inventory.
The NY Times had an interesting article yesterday, entitled Businesses Reduced Inventories in December which further validates my theory, that if business owners don't have confidence in the economy, they are going to market / advertise less, hire less and stock lower inventories.
The article indicates, "The weakness in inventory rebuilding in December was an indication that businesses, still struggling to emerge from the deepest recession in decades, are not yet confident enough in rising sales to begin rebuilding stockpiles on a sustained basis."
As the CEO of, AmeriMerchant, one of the oldest and largest merchant cash advance providers in the space, I can tell you that a very common reason why merchants turn to alternative financing such as the merchant cash advance product is to stock up on inventory.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Merchant Cash Advance Industry 2009 Year End Summary
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; This pretty much summarizes the merchant cash advance industry industry the last few months - very quiet compared to previous years. Both from an industry news perspective and from levels of merchant demand compared to other years.
I'm hearing certain merchant cash advance provider's funding levels are down by as much as 40% from this time last year.
2009 was a very challenging year for many merchant cash advance providers - many losing their credit lines / funding sources. Some had to scale back considerably, others had to scale back 100% - meaning they shut down, layed off a large % of their staff, etc.
As I indicated in the middle of the year, many of these merchant cash advance providers could not sustain the huge losses they took by funding unqualified applicants in 2007/2008 or "crushed their cashflow" with too high of a withholding % to retrieve the future credit card receivables purchased.
One of the things I believe is needed to "jump start" demand for alternative financing products like a merchant cash advance from business owners in 2010 is the obvious - the economy needs to improve which will improve business owner confidence. The unemployment rate needs to decrease so consumers are spending more at their local businesses, hence giving local business owners a reason why they want to expand, buy more inventory, advertise/market, etc.
With all that said, there are a few good merchant cash advance providers still standing (no where near the number that there used to be) that make up 90% of the market. I still think 1 or 2 more will fall in 2010.
It will certainly be a interesting time in 2010 and I look forward to being one of the remaining industry leaders left in the merchant cash advance space.
From all of us at AmeriMerchant, we wish all the readers of the Merchant Cash Advance Blog, a Happy and Healthy Holiday and a very prosperous 2010.
I'm hearing certain merchant cash advance provider's funding levels are down by as much as 40% from this time last year.
2009 was a very challenging year for many merchant cash advance providers - many losing their credit lines / funding sources. Some had to scale back considerably, others had to scale back 100% - meaning they shut down, layed off a large % of their staff, etc.
As I indicated in the middle of the year, many of these merchant cash advance providers could not sustain the huge losses they took by funding unqualified applicants in 2007/2008 or "crushed their cashflow" with too high of a withholding % to retrieve the future credit card receivables purchased.
One of the things I believe is needed to "jump start" demand for alternative financing products like a merchant cash advance from business owners in 2010 is the obvious - the economy needs to improve which will improve business owner confidence. The unemployment rate needs to decrease so consumers are spending more at their local businesses, hence giving local business owners a reason why they want to expand, buy more inventory, advertise/market, etc.
With all that said, there are a few good merchant cash advance providers still standing (no where near the number that there used to be) that make up 90% of the market. I still think 1 or 2 more will fall in 2010.
It will certainly be a interesting time in 2010 and I look forward to being one of the remaining industry leaders left in the merchant cash advance space.
From all of us at AmeriMerchant, we wish all the readers of the Merchant Cash Advance Blog, a Happy and Healthy Holiday and a very prosperous 2010.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Merchant Cash Advance Green Sheet Article
The Green Sheet just published an article on the current state of the merchant cash advance industry entitled, The squeeze in merchant cash advance.
Like I've said all along, the 2007 Merchant Cash Advance model doesn't work. There will only be a few legitimate merchant cash advance providers doing any real volume when the dust settles.
Note to Merchant Cash Advance Providers: It's not how much you fund a month, it's how much you can collect back. To those providers that don't understand, you need to be able to collect the money back to make a profit and stay in business.
Like I've said all along, the 2007 Merchant Cash Advance model doesn't work. There will only be a few legitimate merchant cash advance providers doing any real volume when the dust settles.
Note to Merchant Cash Advance Providers: It's not how much you fund a month, it's how much you can collect back. To those providers that don't understand, you need to be able to collect the money back to make a profit and stay in business.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Merchant Cash Advance Twitter
The Merchant Cash Advance Blog has become the most popular blog in the merchant cash advance industry. I am pleased to announce that in the following the steps of this blog, that the Merchant Cash Advance Blog is now on Twitter. I welcome you to follow me on Twitter for the latest updates in the merchant cash advance industry including breaking news, industry trends, etc. You can find this on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/mcashadvance.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
SBA Loan Article Indicates More Opportunity For Alternative Financing Such As The Merchant Cash Advance Product
According to a recent article on CNNMoney.com, titled A grim year for small business lending, "The SBA Loan volume plunged 36% in 2009 as banks slammed their vaults shut to small businesses."
This is yet another example of how an alternative financing program such as a merchant cash advance is starting to be looked at by business owners who in the past utilized traditional loan products such as a SBA loan or a small business unsecured line of credit from their bank.
As the media is reporting time and time again, small businesses can not get access to the necessary capital they need to drive their business. This will lead to an increased opportunity for those in the merchant cash advance industry as we are starting to see an increase in applicants who in the past utilized their local bank as their source of capital.
Furthermore, the lack of traditional loan products readily available in the marketplace can be a tragic situation for many small businesses if they can not get access to capital for the upcoming holiday season - which can amount to 50% - 75% of many retailer's annual sales.
It will be interesting to see the demand levels in the coming weeks for the merchant cash advance product as retailers looking to borrow from their banks are being shut out.
This is yet another example of how an alternative financing program such as a merchant cash advance is starting to be looked at by business owners who in the past utilized traditional loan products such as a SBA loan or a small business unsecured line of credit from their bank.
As the media is reporting time and time again, small businesses can not get access to the necessary capital they need to drive their business. This will lead to an increased opportunity for those in the merchant cash advance industry as we are starting to see an increase in applicants who in the past utilized their local bank as their source of capital.
Furthermore, the lack of traditional loan products readily available in the marketplace can be a tragic situation for many small businesses if they can not get access to capital for the upcoming holiday season - which can amount to 50% - 75% of many retailer's annual sales.
It will be interesting to see the demand levels in the coming weeks for the merchant cash advance product as retailers looking to borrow from their banks are being shut out.
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Merchant Cash Advance Provider CEO David Goldin of AmeriMerchant Featured Again In The New York Times
I want to thank Brent Bowers again of The New York Times for featuring me in a follow up article in today's business section of The New York Times. I believe AmeriMerchant is the first and only merchant cash advance provider to be featured in The New York Times.(now twice). The original article was in August 2007 regarding the AdvanceMe patent situation. This article features four entrepreneurs, myself being one of them, that were previously featured in the paper and following up to see how they are holding up and prospering in this challenging economy. An online version of the article can be found here
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Even More Positive Merchant Cash Advance News - Survey Indicates That Consumers Plan To Increase Their Restaurant Spending
Restaurants are probably the most common industry that utilize the merchant cash advance product. The amount of working capital a business can receive with a merchant cash advance is based on their sales levels of credit card / debit card sales. Since late 2008 and most of 2009, restaurants have been for the most part hard hit by the economy as consumers were eating out less at restaurants.
However, Nation's Restaurant News, a leading news provider for the foodservice industry, is reporting today that Atlanta-based RBC Capital Markets' September restaurant spending survey, indicated that consumers plan on spending 14% more in restaurants compared to September 2008.
This can only help the merchant cash advance industry as it will not only help build restaurant owner's business confidence, but will also increase the amount of working capital they will qualify for in a few months if there credit card sales increase due to an increase in consumer spending at restaurants.
However, Nation's Restaurant News, a leading news provider for the foodservice industry, is reporting today that Atlanta-based RBC Capital Markets' September restaurant spending survey, indicated that consumers plan on spending 14% more in restaurants compared to September 2008.
This can only help the merchant cash advance industry as it will not only help build restaurant owner's business confidence, but will also increase the amount of working capital they will qualify for in a few months if there credit card sales increase due to an increase in consumer spending at restaurants.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Merchant Cash Advance Demand - More Positive News - Small Business Confidence Rises To Highest Level In 18 Months
As I've pointed out previously, in order for the merchant cash advance industry and/or traditional business loan products to see an increase in sales, there has to be business owner demand for the product.
What drives demand? One key factor is a business owner's willingness to take on additional debt or obligation. What drives this willingness? Economic Confidence - they have to be confident they can pay it back, they have to be confident they can do something productive with the money, they have to be confident it makes sense to open a new business, market/advertise, renovate, etc. In most cases, be on "offense" rather than "defense."
The good news is according to the latest Discover® Small Business WatchSM, economic confidence among small business owners jumped to the highest level in in 18 months in August as more owners expressed faith that the U.S. economy is on the rise and gave signs that they are more willing to invest in advertising and new inventory. While we aren't out of the forest yet, this is all good news and what I predict will be a large demand for retailers to stockup with inventory for the holiday season. If a retailer isn't properly stocked for the holiday season with inventory to sell, they may as well close their doors....
What drives demand? One key factor is a business owner's willingness to take on additional debt or obligation. What drives this willingness? Economic Confidence - they have to be confident they can pay it back, they have to be confident they can do something productive with the money, they have to be confident it makes sense to open a new business, market/advertise, renovate, etc. In most cases, be on "offense" rather than "defense."
The good news is according to the latest Discover® Small Business WatchSM, economic confidence among small business owners jumped to the highest level in in 18 months in August as more owners expressed faith that the U.S. economy is on the rise and gave signs that they are more willing to invest in advertising and new inventory. While we aren't out of the forest yet, this is all good news and what I predict will be a large demand for retailers to stockup with inventory for the holiday season. If a retailer isn't properly stocked for the holiday season with inventory to sell, they may as well close their doors....
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