How to Fund Your Business Without Giving up Equity
Fact-checked by: Bruce Sayer
As a growing company, it’s important to have working capital to keep your business profitable. There are many options to fund your business. The catch, however, is that a few of these options would include giving up a piece of your business. They can also involve restrictions and rules that can be hard to plan for – especially now. Here are some ways you can have more flexibility while keeping complete ownership of your business.
Friends and Family
You might be lucky enough to have those amazing friends and family members in your life that would be generous enough to donate money as a gift with no expectations of payback. Many people close to you will want to see you succeed just as much as you do. Just keep in mind that the donations have to be kept under $15,000 to avoid payment of gift tax. If you only need a small amount of funding, this could be a good option for you.
Crowdfunding
With crowdfunding, you can collect small amounts of capital from multiple investors to help finance your growing business. Crowdfunding works best when it goes hand in hand with smart social media skills and creativity. A great deal of effort will be required to generate interest among potential investors. Methods of generating interest might include creating professional videos and building attention-grabbing marketing collateral to show investors why they should invest in you. There are also crowdfunding websites that match entrepreneurs to investors. Gifts or participation in the launch of the business are the rewards to these investors.
Grants
You can apply from as little as $500 to $100,000 to attain a business grant from the government. The only obligation on your part is to ensure the business succeeds. If you pursue this type of loan, you may apply for either federal or state and local grants. And, if you happen to be a veteran, you would be eligible to apply for a grant through the Department of Veterans Affairs. The downside to this is that in such uncertain times, ensuring quick success isn’t always viable.
Small Business Loans
The option of a small business loan can work for your company, but only if you can show that it meets certain requirements: a business must be in operation for at least two years, have annual revenues upward of $100,000, and a minimum credit score of 640 (which classifies as having good credit).
Asset-Based Lending
(Spoiler alert) – O.K., we’re biased, but we truly believe in the value of asset-based lending to help you and other entrepreneurs pursue dreams of successfully growing businesses. It is flexible, has few restrictions, works with seasonality, and is a loan that grows along side your business. At eCapital, our goal is to not only design the best possible lending solution for business clients, but to take the proverbial journey with them, providing needed funds based on the value of their assets. Client success translates to our success. In short, a win-win situation for all.
As the adage says: “Where there is a will, there is a way.” And the will of entrepreneurs who have integrity and are passionately driven to see their business succeed should have the best ways of achieving these dreams available to them – without losing equity and keeping ownership of their business. Again, we may be biased, but we love the solution of asset-based lending for entrepreneurs and have seen it help entrepreneurs grow in a smart and profitable way.
Have dreams of growing your business? Reach out to us! We can help you turn your growing business dreams into a reality.
ABOUT eCapital
Since 2006, eCapital has been on a mission to change the way small to medium sized businesses access the funding they need to reach their goals. We know that to survive and thrive, businesses need financial flexibility to quickly respond to challenges and take advantage of opportunities, all in real time. Companies today need innovation guided by experience to unlock the potential of their assets to give better, faster access to the capital they require.
We’ve answered the call and have built a team of over 600 experts in asset evaluation, batch processing, customer support and fintech solutions. Together, we have created a funding model that features rapid approvals and processing, 24/7 access to funds and the freedom to use the money wherever and whenever it’s needed. This is the future of business funding, and it’s available today, at eCapital.
eCapital Corp
eCapital Corp. is committed to supporting small and middle-market companies in the United States, Canada, and the UK by accelerating their access to capital through financial solutions like invoice factoring, factoring lines of credit, asset-based lending and equipment refinancing. Headquartered in Miami, Florida, eCapital is an innovative leader in providing flexible, customized cash flow to businesses. For more information about eCapital, visit eCapital.com.