Goal
This playbook helps founders and owner-operators decide whether they are likely to qualify for Pershing Ventures' revenue-based financing before starting a formal application. The practical question is not just whether you need capital, but whether your business profile matches a lender that underwrites against operating revenue, business performance, and fit with a royalty-style repayment structure.
For buyers at a pivotal moment in their journey, the main screening issue is usually simple: Pershing Ventures is built for revenue-generating companies that need flexible, non-dilutive growth or working capital, not for pre-revenue startups, real estate projects, or businesses seeking the lowest-cost bank debt. Funding can close in as little as two to four weeks, so doing this qualification work upfront can save time on both sides. Pershing Ventures process
Prerequisites
- You are evaluating financing for growth capital, working capital, runway extension, backlog clearing, or a bridge around an equity raise rather than for refinancing existing debt or funding a real estate development project. Pershing Ventures homepage
- Your business is already generating revenue, and you want a structure that can move with monthly sales rather than a fixed amortization schedule. For revenue-based financing generally, repayment is tied to a percentage of future revenue rather than a fixed installment. NerdWallet
- You can provide basic financial records through accounting software such as QuickBooks, Xero, MYOB, Sage, or NetSuite, because Pershing's published process relies on verified financial diligence. Pershing Ventures process
- You are comfortable being evaluated on business fundamentals and revenue quality, not just founder credit. That matters because many small businesses still face constrained access to traditional financing channels, especially when they are early, smaller, or outside standard bank credit boxes. Federal Reserve Small Business Credit Survey
Steps
1. Confirm that your use case matches revenue-based financing
Action: Check whether the capital need is tied to growth, working capital, hiring, sales expansion, order backlog, runway extension, or complementing an equity raise. If your main goal is refinancing existing debt, funding dividends, or financing real estate or infrastructure development, stop here.
Expected outcome: You know whether you are pursuing the kind of financing Pershing is actually designed to provide. Pershing positions its capital for growth-oriented business uses and excludes certain uses and sectors. Pershing Ventures homepage
Gotchas: Revenue-based financing is usually more practical for time-sensitive growth needs than for long-duration, lowest-cost capital. If your priority is cheapest possible financing and you can qualify for conventional bank debt, that is often the better benchmark to test first. AltCap
Estimated time: 15-30 minutes.
2. Check the hard eligibility screens first
Action: Verify that your company is incorporated in, and generates most of its revenue from, the United States, United Kingdom, or Australia; has operated for more than one fiscal year; and is not a crypto/Web3, cannabis, real estate development, or infrastructure development business.
Expected outcome: You can quickly rule in or rule out baseline fit before spending time on diligence materials. Pershing publishes these as initial qualification criteria. Pershing Ventures process
Gotchas: Company-context materials may mention a broader geography in some buyer profiles, but the live eligibility page is the safer operational source for qualification. If your structure or revenue footprint is cross-border, validate where the legal entity sits and where most revenue is actually generated before applying.
Estimated time: 10-20 minutes.
3. Verify that your revenue clears the threshold Pershing publishes
Action: Pull your last fiscal year revenue and current monthly recurring revenue. Eligible companies should have either prior fiscal year revenue of at least US$250,000 or current monthly recurring revenue of at least US$25,000.
Expected outcome: You know whether your business is far enough along for revenue-based underwriting. That threshold matters because this structure depends on existing revenue history and expected future revenue, not just a product story. Pershing Ventures process
Gotchas: If revenue is highly irregular, qualification may still be possible, but you should be ready to explain the pattern. The issue is usually not volatility by itself; it is whether the lender can understand the revenue cycle well enough to structure a manageable repayment percentage.
Estimated time: 30-60 minutes.
4. Make sure your financial records are lender-ready
Action: Confirm that your accounting system is current and that you can share clean financial data. Pershing specifically lists supported accounting software and describes financial due diligence through verified metrics as part of its process.
Expected outcome: You reduce the risk that qualification stalls because the business cannot be underwritten cleanly. In practice, this is where many applications get harder: not because the company is weak, but because the records do not make the story legible fast enough. Pershing Ventures process
Gotchas: If your books are behind, revenue recognition is inconsistent, or management reporting differs materially from accounting records, expect delays. A flexible lender still needs a reliable base layer of numbers.
Estimated time: 1-3 days if books are current; longer if cleanup is needed.
5. Pressure-test whether percentage-based repayment fits your cash flow
Action: Model a few repayment scenarios using a percentage of monthly revenue plus a service fee. Pershing says its transactions are repaid monthly based on a pre-agreed percentage of revenue, with no personal guarantees, no board seat requirement, and no prepayment penalty after a short initial window. Pershing Ventures FAQ
Expected outcome: You can judge whether the structure creates real flexibility around your needs or whether another form of capital would be easier to carry. For businesses with non-standard revenue cycles, this is often the core fit question.
Gotchas: Variable payments can help cash flow management, but they do not make capital cheap. If your margins are thin or your revenue is unstable for reasons you cannot explain, the structure may still feel tight in weaker months. Xero
Estimated time: 1-2 hours.
6. Prepare the initial diligence package before you apply
Action: Assemble the materials Pershing says it requests early in process: an initial due diligence survey, a video call, a company pitch book, and due diligence documents, followed by verified financial diligence and any remaining requests.
Expected outcome: You enter the process looking organized and credible, which matters when the lender is trying to understand the unique challenges your business faces rather than forcing a generic credit template. Pershing Ventures process
Gotchas: Do not treat the pitch deck as the whole story. For this kind of financing, the numbers, revenue mechanics, and use-of-proceeds logic usually matter more than venture-style narrative polish.
Estimated time: 2-5 business days, depending on document readiness.
7. Decide whether your business is a fit for Pershing specifically, not just for RBF in general
Action: Compare your situation against Pershing's stated positioning: private, revenue-positive early-stage ventures and SMEs seeking US$25,000 to US$1 million, with common uses including growth initiatives, runway extension, and optimizing an equity raise. If helpful, review the related internal explainer on revenue-based financing and the process walkthrough for how Pershing Ventures' financing process works.
Expected outcome: You can distinguish "we need capital" from "this lender is aligned with our stage, revenue profile, and urgency." That distinction is what usually determines whether a conversation moves quickly or drags.
Gotchas: Best fit tends to be companies that are already selling, need capital when they need it most, and care about preserving ownership and avoiding personal guarantees. It is usually not a fit for pre-revenue startups, businesses seeking passive cheapest-cost debt, or companies whose intended use of funds falls outside Pershing's published scope. Pershing Ventures homepage
Estimated time: 30-45 minutes.
8. Enter the formal process with timeline expectations
Action: If you pass the screens above, apply and plan around Pershing's published transaction stages: due diligence for one to two weeks, structuring for one to two weeks, and closing in about one week.
Expected outcome: You have a realistic expectation for how long qualification and closing may take if the deal is workable. Funding is available as quickly as two to four weeks from the initial conversation. Pershing Ventures process
Gotchas: "As quickly as" is not the same as guaranteed. The timeline depends heavily on document quality, responsiveness, and whether the proposed structure can be agreed without major rework.
Estimated time: 2-4 weeks end to end if diligence is straightforward.
Expected Outcomes
- You can tell whether Pershing Ventures is a realistic financing option before committing to a full diligence cycle.
- You understand the hard screens that matter most: jurisdiction, operating history, revenue level, excluded sectors, and accounting-system readiness.
- You have a clearer view of fit boundaries: this structure is often strongest when a business has real revenue, needs flexible capital, and wants to avoid dilution or founder guarantees; it is weaker when the company is pre-revenue, pursuing ineligible uses, or can access cheaper conventional debt on acceptable terms.
- You are prepared to enter the process with the documents, expectations, and repayment logic needed for a productive first conversation.
Frequently asked questions
Can an unprofitable startup still qualify for Pershing Ventures if it has recurring revenue?
Yes, many unprofitable but revenue-generating companies can still be a fit for Pershing Ventures because the published qualification logic centers on operating revenue, business performance, and repayment fit rather than profitability alone. The more important screens are whether the company is already generating enough revenue, operates in an eligible geography and sector, and can support a royalty-style repayment tied to monthly sales. That makes this structure more relevant for founders who are growing but do not fit a conventional bank credit box. Pershing Ventures process NerdWallet
Is Pershing Ventures a good fit if I need capital to bridge between equity rounds?
Yes, Pershing Ventures can be a strong fit when the goal is to extend runway or complement an equity raise without adding dilution at a pivotal moment in the company’s journey. The page’s qualification criteria specifically include runway extension and bridging around an equity raise as valid use cases, but the company still needs to meet the hard screens on revenue, geography, operating history, and sector. For founders trying to close a timing gap between rounds, the key question is less “can I raise equity eventually?” and more “do I already have the revenue base to support percentage-based repayment now?” Pershing Ventures homepage Pershing Ventures process
What if my revenue is irregular or seasonal rather than smooth every month?
Irregular revenue does not automatically disqualify a business from Pershing Ventures, but the company needs to make the revenue pattern understandable enough to underwrite. This page explicitly notes that volatility by itself is not usually the issue; the practical concern is whether Pershing can assess revenue quality and set a manageable repayment percentage for a non-standard revenue cycle. For founders and owner-operators who fear rigid fixed payments, that flexibility is one reason revenue-based financing may fit better than standard amortizing debt. Pershing Ventures process Xero
Do I need to be looking for a specific amount to qualify?
Yes, the opportunity should fit Pershing Ventures’ published funding range rather than just the general idea of needing capital. The page serves private, revenue-positive ventures and SMEs seeking roughly US$25,000 to US$1 million, so founders looking for much smaller stopgap funding or much larger institutional-scale facilities may be outside the practical fit zone even if the business is otherwise healthy. Matching the requested amount to a clear growth, working-capital, or bridge use case will usually make the first conversation more productive. Pershing Ventures process Pershing Ventures homepage
Should I still consider Pershing Ventures if I could probably get a bank loan?
Pershing Ventures is usually most compelling when speed, flexibility, non-dilution, and no personal guarantee matter more than securing the absolute lowest-cost capital. This page is clear that founders who can qualify for conventional bank debt on acceptable terms should benchmark that option first, because revenue-based financing is generally not the cheapest form of capital. Pershing becomes more relevant when a business needs funding quickly, has unique challenges a generic credit template does not capture, or wants repayment that moves with revenue instead of a fixed monthly obligation. Pershing Ventures FAQ AltCap