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Capify allows eligible limited companies to borrow between £5,000 and £500,000 and sole traders and partnerships to borrow over £25,000, whether through a small business loan or a merchant cash advance.
Both types of borrowing have minimum turnover requirements and will be repaid in ways that differ from traditional business loans. The small business loan is repaid in daily instalments for a term of up to 12 months, while merchant cash advances are paid back as a percentage of your daily debit and credit card sales.
Capify Small Business Loans
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Representative APRAvailable on application
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Representative ExampleAvailable on application
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Available amounts£5,000 – £750,000
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Available Terms3 – 18 months
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Key features
- Small businesses can borrow up to £500,000Capify offers lending products of £5,000 to £500,000, available as both a small business loan and a merchant cash advance. Sole traders and partnership lending starts at £25,001.
- Loan terms of three to 12 monthsCapify business loans are designed for short-term borrowing over three to 12 months.
- Daily repaymentsWith a Capify small business loan, you make daily repayments over the length of your loan.
- Turnover requirementsYou need at least £10,000 in monthly turnover for a small business loan and £20,000 in monthly credit or debit card turnover for a merchant cash advance.
Capify business loans pros & cons
Pros
- You can borrow up to £500,000 with a Capify small business loan or merchant cash advance.
- Business loans offer short-term borrowing over three to 12 months, broken into small daily repayments.
- You have access to over-the-phone customer service.
- There are no early repayment fees.
- Capify considers all credit profiles and looks at different lending criteria to a traditional bank.
Cons
- The majority owner of the business is required to provide a personal guarantee when taking out a loan.
- There are minimum monthly turnover requirements for both the Capify small business loan and merchant cash advance.
- You may be subject to processing, origination and monthly service fees when taking out a Capify business loan.
- There is no app-based customer service or branch support. Web-based support also directs users to the phone.
The pros and cons featured here are chosen by us based on a combination of our expert, research-based opinions and an exclusive survey of UK business owners and decision makers. The survey was conducted on behalf of NerdWallet UK in December 2022 to identify the business loans features that people feel are most important. They are unlikely to be the only product features and restrictions that you should consider. Pros and cons are subjective and you should align them to your own personal and business circumstances. Information was correct at the time of publication but may have changed since.
Capify business loans full review
Founded in 2008, Capify specialises in providing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with business funding.
Capify is not a bank, but a direct online lender, providing business borrowing of up to £500,000. At present, it offers two products: a small business loan and a merchant cash advance.
With both products, the majority owner of the business will be required to provide a personal guarantee. This means that, if the business cannot repay the loan, it will become the responsibility of the majority owner.
Depending on your business, you may be able to get same-day approval, as well as funding within 24 hours of your initial application.
Small business loans
With a Capify unsecured small business loan, you can borrow between £5,000 and £500,000 as a limited company. If you are a sole trader or partnership, however, Capify business loans are only available over £25,000. This loan is designed for short-term borrowing, with a term of three to 12 months. So it may not be suitable if you want longer than a year to pay off your loan – another loan provider may be more appropriate to your business.
A Capify loan differs from many other business loans because instead of making monthly repayments, your total payback figure is broken down into small daily repayments. Depending on the size of these repayments, this could be more manageable for your business than a monthly lump sum.
Capify uses a factor rate based on risk to determine the total amount you will need to repay. A factor rate is usually expressed as a decimal number, such as 1.2 or 1.5, rather than a percentage. This is then multiplied by the amount you are borrowing to calculate the total you need to repay. So if you borrow £10,000 at a factor rate of 1.2, you would need to repay £12,000. Your factor rate will, in part, be determined by your gross monthly sales, your credit score and other criteria.
When taking out a Capify small business loan, you will also need to pay a processing fee (tied to the amount you have borrowed), an origination fee and a fixed monthly service fee.
Merchant cash advance
If your business regularly generates sales through credit or debit cards, then you could consider a Capify merchant cash advance.
As with a small business loan, you can borrow between £5,000 and £500,000. Merchant cash advances also come with a factor rate to determine the overall amount you need to repay.
You would pay the advance back as a percentage of your daily credit and debit card takings. This means that your repayments would rise and fall in line with your sales performance – the better your business is doing, the faster you will pay it off.
You will also be subject to a processing fee (tied to the amount you are borrowing), an origination fee, and, if applicable, a monthly Cashplus fee.
Capify business loans: at a glance
| Amount borrowable | £5,000 to £500,000 (loans to sole traders and partnerships start at £25,001) |
| Term length | Three to 12 months (small business loan)Variable (merchant cash advance) |
| Web-based customer service | Online contact form |
| UK customer service number | 0800 151 0980 (9am to 5.30pm, Monday to Friday) |
| App | No |
| Face-to-face customer service | No |
| Access to loans without pre-existing account | Yes |
Where Capify business loans stands out
Considers all credit profiles: Capify looks at different application criteria than a traditional bank, meaning its business loans are available to a variety of credit profiles.
Maximum amount borrowable: At £500,000, the maximum amount you can borrow with a Capify unsecured small business loan is at the higher end of the market.
Minimum loan term: With a minimum loan term of three months, Capify may be a good option if you are looking for a short-term loan.
No early repayment fees: You will not be penalised if you want to repay your loan in full before the end of its term.
Manageable repayments: Capify’s small business loan is repaid in small daily instalments, which might be more manageable for your business than finding a lump sum each month.
No need to create a new business bank account: Since Capify is not a bank, you will not need to create a new business bank account when applying for a loan.
Where Capify business loans fall short
Eligibility requirements: You need at least £10,000 in monthly turnover to access a small business loan, and at least £20,000 in monthly debit and credit card turnover to get a merchant cash advance.
Fees: When taking out a Capify business loan, you may be subject to processing, origination and monthly service fees.
Personal guarantees: The majority owner of the business is required to provide a personal guarantee when taking out a Capify loan.
Minimum amount borrowable: Sole traders and partnerships can only start borrowing at £25,001. This means Capify is not suitable for sole traders looking to borrow a smaller amount of money.
Maximum loan term: At just 12 months, Capify’s maximum loan term is at the shorter end of the market when compared to other lenders.
Customer support: Capify’s main form of customer support is over the phone. There is no app or branch support, and limited online customer service.
Capify business loans customer reviews
Capify has an ‘Excellent’ Trustpilot rating of 4.5 out of 5, based on over 460 reviews. Bear in mind that this rating is based on the brand as a whole, not any specific offering.
This information is correct as of 3 August 2023.
Capify business loans eligibility
Capify’s loans are available to limited companies, as well as sole traders and partnerships applying for a sum greater than £25,000. The specific eligibility requirements for a Capify small business loan and a merchant cash advance, meanwhile, differ slightly.
Small business loan
In order to qualify for a Capify small business loan, you need to:
- be a registered business in the UK
- be over the age of 18-years-old
- have been trading for a minimum of 12 months
- have a monthly minimum turnover of at least £10,000
You will also be subject to a credit check when you submit your loan application.
Merchant cash advance
To qualify for a Capify merchant cash advance, you need to:
- run a UK-based business
- have at least 12 months of trading records
- have been trading for at least six months
- have a monthly turnover of £20,000 or more on credit or debit card
You will also be subject to a credit check when you submit your merchant cash advance application.
» MORE: Guide to business credit scores
How to apply for a Capify business loan
When applying for a Capify business loan, you will likely need to complete the following steps:
- Decide whether you want a small business loan or merchant cash advice, alongside how much you want to borrow and for how long.
- Apply online and get pre-approval.
- Talk to a Capify agent, who will help you find a tailored borrowing solution for your business.
- Submit the minimum level of documentation Capify requires, including your last 12 months’ worth of bank statements.
- Allow Capify to carry out its standard credit assessment to help determine what rate you pay for your loan.
- Check your account for your funds. Depending on your circumstances, you could have the funds within 24 hours of your application.
» MORE: How to get a business loan
Review methodology
At NerdWallet UK, we base our reviews and our ‘Best’ pages on the results of surveys we undertook about what was important to people who use these products. This allows us to look at products impartially of any commercial arrangements we have and fairly rate the products on the same set of criteria.
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Our reviews may display lenders’ rates. This additional information has not been included in our evaluations but is still very important when choosing a product. Rates offered can depend on circumstances, amount and term. Always check details before proceeding with any financial product.
Product details reflect the information that was available at that time but may have changed since. We strive to give you a review on as many products as possible, but there will be products not included on the market. The review is our opinion, but it does not constitute advice, recommendation or suitability for your financial circumstances.
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