Merchant Cash Advance
First Data’s direct-to-market merchant acquiring business; First Data Merchant Solutions has announced the availability of its Merchant Cash Advance programme in the UK. The solution allows SME’s that accept card payments to access an alternative source of funding to increase the cash flow.
It’s available to both new First Data Merchant Solutions customers and provides a lump-sum advance based on the merchant’s monthly card transactions. The advance is automatically paid back through a fixed, specified percentage of daily card processing settlements with First Data Merchant Solutions. Because there is no fixed payment amount, during quiet trading periods the repayments are lower, further helping cash flow, while the reverse is true for higher-volume trading periods.
To be eligible for an advance, merchants must typically process at least GBP1,000 per month in card transactions, have a good standing with their landlord and no unresolved bankruptcies.
Phil Curtis, Managing Director, First Data Merchant Solutions, commented: “Access to finance and reliable cash flow are key inhibitors for small and medium sized businesses in the UK and have been for the last six years. Merchant Cash Advance offers our merchant base access to an alternative source of cash flow in challenging times. Ultimately, because it is a factoring programme, rather than an interest-based loan, we are seeking to support our merchants’ growth and expand their businesses by offering a simpler alternative to complex, high-cost financial relationships.”
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