Why three months
We ask for about three months of business bank statements and no tax returns. Three months is long enough to show a pattern and recent enough to reflect how the business is performing now, rather than how it did last year.
The five things a funder reads
- Deposit volume. How much money comes in each month.
- Deposit consistency. Whether it comes in regularly or in lumps.
- Average balance. Whether the account holds a cushion or sits near zero.
- Negative days and overdrafts. How often the account dips below zero or has returned items.
- Existing obligations. Regular payments to other financing show up as recurring withdrawals.
Reading it from both sides
| Signal | Reads as strength | Raises a question |
|---|---|---|
| Deposits | Regular, similar in size each week | One large deposit with little else |
| Balance | Stays above one payroll | Often near zero |
| Overdrafts | None or rare | Several in a month |
| Transfers | Clear business activity | Money moving between accounts without a reason |
Fixing what you can before you apply
- Move all customer payments into the business account.
- Stop paying personal bills from it where possible.
- Avoid overdrafts by holding a small buffer.
- Label unusual deposits in your notes: a refund, a loan, an owner contribution.
You cannot rewrite last quarter, but you can improve the next one. If a quarter is already behind you and looks messy, say what happened in the application instead of hoping it goes unnoticed.
Sole proprietors and mixed accounts
Sole proprietors can apply. If your business and personal money share an account, mention it in the application. A separate business account makes your deposits easier to read.
A worked reading, for illustration only
Imagine a salon that deposits roughly $22,000 a month in three consecutive months, with balances that never fall below $4,000 and no overdrafts. A reader sees a stable business. Now imagine a second salon that deposits $14,000, then $31,000, then $9,000, with two negative days. The second may be perfectly healthy, a wedding season followed by a slow month, but the reader will want an explanation. Neither example is a prediction. They show why consistency and context both count.
What to expect when you apply
The application takes about five minutes and uses a soft credit pull. We consider FICO scores of 500 and above, and funding runs from $25,000 to $5,000,000, with funding in as little as 24 hours. The statements are one part of the picture; the stated use of funds and the amount you request matter too. Start here when your statements are in order.
What a funder does not need from you
We do not require tax returns. You do not need to produce a formal profit-and-loss statement or a business plan to apply. The statements and a short application carry the review, and you can add context where you think it helps. Providing more than is asked is fine, but missing pages or altered documents will slow things down, so send the originals as your bank issued them.