What are the primary differences of these debt products versus typical angel or venture capital investments?
Specialty debt lenders provide funding today in exchange for a portion of future revenues. The debt plus a pre-agreed return is repaid over a period of time up to the agreed upon value primarily known as the "cap".
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There is no valuation required nor any equity issuance.
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There aren’t any board seats required nor any intrusive behavior.
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The debt is structured so that repayment is sourced solely from an agreed-to percentage of top line revenue and capped per mutual agreement.
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There are no forced liquidity requirements (ie. sale, etc.).
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The cost of capital is significantly less than a similar equity investment for several reasons: First, the actual "all in cost" is much lower than the effective rate of return required by an equity investor on their invested capital. Second, legal / documentation fees are lower than with equity financing and thirdly, because the investment is a loan, the interest payments can often be a tax deduction for the business.
How is this debt different from commercial bank loans or venture debt?
Banks and venture-based lending require a set payment schedule irrespective of company performance. In the case of venture debt aside from an interest rate return companies are usually required to provide "equity upside" in the form of stock warrant coverage.
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Commercial Lenders underwriting criteria often precludes financing of early stage and growth companies. Commercial loans also require hard assets and personal guarantees to collateralize a loan; our flexible structure eliminates these requirements.
What type of companies fit the funding profile, are there any specific industries or geographic limitations?
​Companies that exhibit strong growth with trailing 12-month revenue of $1,500,000 to $100,000,000 and a minimum two-year operating history with a clear path to profitability. Our specialty debt fund placements are not limited to any industry or specific market segment. Companies that have proven, scalable revenue with market ready products or services are candidates for this financing throughout the United States.
​What size of investment is available, how long does a company have to repay the investment, what can the funding be utilized for?
The loans range in size from $500,000 to $15 million and usually have terms of up to 5 years. Funding can be used for acquisitions, growth and working capital.
How would these instruments be viewed by existing or future equity investors?
​Existing equity investors view specialty debt as complimentary for three reasons: one, their interest in the company is not diluted; two, they are not asked to invest additional capital; and three, a growth capital investment strengthens the company and therefore their investment.
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​What happens if the borrower fails to meet revenue projections and respayments cannot be made as anticipated?
​The largest differentiating factor with these loans is that the payments are structured to accommodate variability as repayment amounts track with top line revenue.​
How would these instruments be viewed by existing or future equity investors?
​Existing equity investors view specialty debt as complimentary for three reasons: one, their interest in the company is not diluted; two, they are not asked to invest additional capital; and three, a growth capital investment strengthens the company and therefore their investment.
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​What happens if the borrower fails to meet revenue projections and respayments cannot be made as anticipated?
​The largest differentiating factor with these loans is that the payments are structured to accommodate variability as repayment amounts track with top line revenue.​
What type of companies fit the funding profile, are there any specific industries or geographic limitations?
​What size of investment is available, how long does a company have to repay the investment, what can the funding be utilized for?
The loans range in size from $500,000 to $15 million and usually have terms of up to 5 years. Funding can be used for acquisitions, growth and working capital.
How would these instruments be viewed by existing or future equity investors?
​Existing equity investors view specialty debt as complimentary for three reasons: one, their interest in the company is not diluted; two, they are not asked to invest additional capital; and three, a growth capital investment strengthens the company and therefore their investment.
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​What happens if the borrower fails to meet revenue projections and respayments cannot be made as anticipated?
​The largest differentiating factor with these loans is that the payments are structured to accommodate variability as repayment amounts track with top line revenue.​
Describe the due-diligence process, how does it differ from that of Private Equity Investors or Venture Capitalists?
​The process is simpler and faster than traditional debt or equity financing options. The due-diligence process is thorough yet more focused on the company’s ability to generate sustainable revenue and gross margin to cover the loan while allowing the company to achieve its growth plans. Since future positioning for sale is not the objective of the lender the analysis is dramatically simplified.
What is the process for securing funding, how long does it take?
The first step toward securing a specialty debt instrument is to contact our principals who will provide guidance and determine if your funding requirement meets the criteria for the debt structure.
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The process is completely transparent, simple and funding usually occurs with a 30-45 day period.
What are the primary differences of these debt products versus typical angel or venture capital equity investments?
Specialty debt lenders provide funding today in exchange for a portion of future revenues. The debt is repaid over a period of time up to the agreed upon value primarily known as the "cap".
​​
-
There is no valuation required nor any equity issuance
-
There are no board seats required nor any intrusive behavior
-
There are no forced liquidity requirements (i.e. sale, stock redemptions, etc.)
​​
The cost of capital is significantly less than a similar equity investment for several reasons:
​
-
The rate of return is lower than required by an equity investor
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Transaction expenses are lower than with equity financing
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Debt repayment is often tax deductible
How is this debt different from commercial bank loans or venture debt?
Banks and venture-based lending require a set payment schedule irrespective of company performance and often include equity participation in addition to personal guarantees. Our structures ties repayment to top-line revenue; which minimizes demands on your near-term operating cash flow. ​
What type of companies fit the funding profile, are there any specific industries or geographic limitations?
​Companies that exhibit strong growth with trailing 12-month revenue of $1,500,000 to $100,000,000 and a minimum two-year operating history with a clear path to profitability. Our specialty placements are not limited to any industry or specific market segment. Companies that have scalable revenue with market-ready products or services are candidates for this financing throughout the United States.
​What size of investment is available, how long does a company have to repay the investment, what can the funding be utilized for?
The loans range in size from $500,000 to $15 million and usually have terms of up to 5 years. Funding can be used for growth, acquisitions and working capital.
How would these instruments be viewed by existing or future equity investors?
​Existing equity investors view specialty debt as complimentary for three reasons:
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Equity holders are not diluted
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Equity holders are not asked to invest additional capital
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These growth capital placements strengthen the company and therefore equity holders investments.
​​What happens if the borrower fails to meet revenue projections and repayment cannot be made as anticipated?
​The largest differentiating factor with these loans is that the payments are structured to accommodate variability as repayment amounts track with top line revenue.​
Describe the due-diligence process, how does it differ from that of Private Equity Investors or Venture Capitalists?
​The process is simpler and faster than traditional debt or equity financing options. The due-diligence process is thorough yet more focused on the company’s ability to generate sustainable revenue and gross margin to cover the loan while allowing the company to achieve its growth plans. Since future positioning for sale is not the objective of the lender the analysis is dramatically simplified.
What is the process for securing funding, how long does it take?
The first step toward securing a specialty debt instrument is to contact our Principals who will provide guidance and determine if the funding requirement are met.
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The process is completely transparent, simple and funding usually occurs with a 30-45 day period.
​In summary, why should my Company consider specialty debt for growth funding?
Our financing is appreciated for its simplicity, alignment of investor interests and flexibility.
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Our approach provides the capital you require with a flexible repayment schedule that caps the amount repaid on a pre-negotiated basis.
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These structures float with your Company’s top line revenue; there is no required equity issuance, no required board seat, no operating oversight and no unsolicited intrusion on how the Company is operated by its Principals.
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The non-dilutive nature relieves a Company of achieving "hockey stick" revenue growth and the uncertainty of exit valuations normally required by traditional sources of capital. ​
How much will your services cost my Company?
We do not charge a retainer. The Company only pays a fee once they have received funding. We are completely success driven.