Factoring Company Guide
Step One: The Client Application
You start by completing a simple client profile that we provide. This will include basic details like your company's name, address, what your business does, and some info about your customers.
You might also have to provide some documents like an accounts receivable aging report, or your customers' credit limits. The goal here is for us, the factor, to understand how creditworthy your customers are, beyond just their history with you. We want a more complete picture of their credit situation.
In this early phase, you'll also discuss financial arrangements with the factor. This includes things like how many invoices you plan to factor each month (or how cash-ready you need to be), the advance rate, the discount rate, and how fast we can provide the advance.
Usually, the answers to these questions will depend on your customers' financial strength and the expected monthly sales volume to be factored. Things like the type of industry, how long you've been in operation, and the general riskiness of your customers can make a difference. For example, factoring for a large number of high-risk clients will be more expensive than for a small number of slow-paying government agencies.
In factoring, volume is crucial. The more you factor (the total dollar amount of invoices), the better your rates will be.
We'll use the client profile you submit to decide if your business is a good fit for factoring. This involves weighing the potential risks and benefits based on the information you provided.
Once you're approved, you'll get to negotiate terms and conditions. The negotiation process considers various aspects of the deal. For instance, if you're factoring $10,000, you can't expect as good a deal as a company that wants to factor $500,000.
During negotiations, you'll learn all about the cost of factoring your accounts receivable. After an agreement is reached with the factor, we start the funding process. This involves checking your customers' credit, looking for any liens against your company, and verifying the validity of your invoice before buying your receivables and advancing money to you.
Factoring Company Benefits
Factoring Benefits: Drive Your Business Forward
- Concentrate on scaling your business, unburdened by cash flow issues.
- Free yourself from the stress of repaying loans with rapid cash access.
- Retain full command over your business strategies and operations.
- Significantly reduce the costs involved in pursuing payments.
- Expertly manage your cash flow by selectively selling invoices.
- Outpace clients who delay payments, maintaining your financial momentum.
- Accelerate your production and sales with a stable cash flow.
- Utilize professional expertise in collecting payments and conducting credit checks.
- Ensure payroll is consistently managed without fail.
- Always have funds on hand to cover your payroll taxes.
- Unlock discounts and savings through bulk material purchases.
- Strengthen your purchasing power, leading to cost savings.
- Enhance your credit rating with timely financial commitments.
- Secure the capital necessary for business expansion and diversification.
- Invest in robust marketing strategies with available funds.
- See a positive transformation in your financial reports.
- Gain valuable insights from comprehensive reports on your receivables.
Is Factoring For You
The Importance of Factoring
"Without payment, a sale remains just a promise." Have you become an unintentional financier for your customers? This is an important question for your business's financial health.
A close look at your accounts receivable will reveal the extent to which you're extending credit. This is likely not what you had in mind when you set out to grow your business.
If these customers were to borrow from a bank, they'd be paying interest. In contrast, you're not earning any interest, and critically, you're missing the opportunity to reinvest that capital. This is a hidden cost that needs your attention.
Extended payment terms might seem generous, but they tie up funds that could be used to drive your business forward. It's time to consider a more effective strategy to manage your receivables.
Factoring History
Factoring History
Welcome to the world of factoring. Whether you're a business owner, aspiring entrepreneur, or seeking new financial tools for your current employer, factoring can help you achieve your financial goals. Surprisingly, factoring serves as the financial backbone for many successful American businesses.
The irony lies in the fact that factoring is rarely taught in business colleges, seldom mentioned in business plans, and remains relatively unknown to the majority of American businesspeople. However, it plays a crucial role in freeing up billions of dollars every year, enabling thousands of businesses to thrive and prosper.
So, what exactly is factoring? It is the process of purchasing commercial accounts receivable (invoices) from a business at a discount. In today's business landscape, offering credit terms to customers has become a common practice in order to secure business. However, these terms can strain the financial health of new or struggling companies, as cash flow is the lifeblood of any business.
Factoring has a rich and ancient tradition, dating back 4,000 years to the days of Hammurabi, the king of Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia, often called the "cradle of civilization," contributed numerous advancements including writing, structured business codes, government regulations, and the concept of factoring.
Over time, various civilizations embraced factoring. The Romans, for example, were the first to sell promissory notes at a discount. In the American colonies before the revolution, factoring gained widespread documented use. The colonists relied on merchant bankers in London and Europe who provided funds in advance for shipping cotton, furs, and timber before they reached the continent. This allowed the colonists to continue their operations without waiting for payment from European customers.
It's important to note that these arrangements differed from modern banking relationships. If the colonists had relied on traditional banking services in eighteenth-century England, the process would have been much slower. Banks would have awaited payment from the European buyers before paying the colonists. This impractical process led to the emergence of factors in colonial times, who advanced funds against accounts receivable, enabling clients to continue their operations before receiving payment.
During the Industrial Revolution, factoring evolved to focus more on credit issues while preserving its core principle. Factors assisted clients in assessing the creditworthiness of their customers and establishing credit limits, thus guaranteeing payment for approved customers. This practice, known as non-recourse factoring, is common in today's business landscape.
Prior to the 1930s, factoring primarily occurred in the textile and garment industries, as these industries directly inherited the colonial economy's reliance on factoring. After the war years, factors recognized the potential to extend factoring to other industries that relied on invoices, leading to its expansion.
Today, factors come in various forms and sizes. They exist as divisions within large financial institutions, but more frequently as privately owned entrepreneurial endeavors. The rise of private factors surged in the 1960s and 1970s when interest rates soared to unprecedented heights. This trend continued in the 1980s due to increasing interest rates and changes in the banking industry. With banks becoming costly and inflexible due to heavy regulations (recall the Savings and Loan crisis), small business owners sought alternative sources of financing for their expansion and growth. As more banks distanced themselves from small business owners, factoring emerged as a popular option.
Each year, thousands of businesses sell billions of dollars in accounts receivable through factoring. They do so to achieve profitability, fuel growth, and, in some cases, ensure their very survival.
Credit Risk
Quick Cash Flow Solution: Unlocking Success with Expert Credit Risk Assessment
No Additional Cost for Access to Comprehensive Credit Expertise
Accurately evaluating credit risk is a vital aspect of our factoring business. Few clients possess the same level of objectivity as we do in performing this function.
At no extra cost, we serve as your dedicated credit department, supporting both new and existing customers. This provides you with a significant advantage compared to handling credit evaluations internally.
Imagine a scenario where a salesperson pursues a new account with potential for substantial purchases. In their eagerness to secure the business, they might overlook warning signs related to credit difficulties and bypass your internal credit checks. While this approach may lead to a sale, it does not guarantee payment, and without payment, there is no true success.
With us, such situations are avoided. We make credit decisions based on a comprehensive understanding of the new customer's credit situation. We refrain from purchasing invoices from customers with poor credit ratings, minimizing the risk of nonpayment. However, please note that our involvement does not imply a tightening of credit to the extent that it negatively impacts your business beyond your control.
Ultimately, the decision to engage with a new customer of questionable creditworthiness remains yours. (Although, we do reserve the right to say, ""We told you so!"")
While we may not purchase those invoices, you retain the freedom to extend credit terms as you see fit. You remain in control. Regardless of the decisions you make, our participation ensures that you have access to comprehensive, objective, and high-quality information to make informed credit decisions, surpassing your previous practices.
We conduct thorough research on new clients and, equally important, regularly monitor the credit ratings of your existing customers. This stands in stark contrast to the common practice of neglecting routine credit updates on the established customer base. Such oversight can prove to be a costly mistake.
Typically, businesses conduct credit checks only when it's too late, and the problem has already escalated. In contrast, we promptly notify you of any changes in the credit status of your existing customers.
In addition to providing specific customer credit information, we offer comprehensive and detailed reports on your accounts receivables as a whole. Our process includes accounting details, transactional insights, aging reports, and financial management reports. This valuable data empowers you to integrate it into your sales tracking, account history, and in-depth analysis.
With over 70 years of successful experience in managing cash flow and credit, we are excited to leverage our expertise for your benefit. Let us put our knowledge to work for you, helping you achieve your financial goals, unlocking your business's true potential, and paving the way for sustained success.
How To Change Factoring Companies
Changing Your Invoice Finance Provider
Considering a switch in your invoice finance provider? This essential guide is designed to help you understand the nuances of UCCs, streamline the transition process, and identify critical questions for selecting your next financial partner.
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) Explained
The UCC filing is a vital tool for invoice finance companies to safeguard their interests:
- It records asset rights.
- Notifies other lenders about your existing financial commitments.
- Assures that your finance company has priority over your invoices, similar to property mortgages or vehicle titles.
Transitioning Between Providers
Moving to a new provider involves a "buyout" - a process where your new financier settles the balance with the old one, much like mortgage refinancing. This is formalized through a Buyout Agreement.
Calculating the Buyout Amount
The buyout sum usually consists of your unpaid invoices minus reserves, plus additional fees from your previous financier. It's crucial to ask for a comprehensive breakdown to fully understand any extra charges or termination fees.
Cost Implications of a Buyout
The transition can be cost-effective if you use fresh invoices for the new financier. But be aware, using previously financed invoices could lead to duplicate fees. While some financiers may offer discounts, timely communication with your former provider is essential to avoid extra costs.
Time Considerations
Changing providers might extend the usual timeframe due to the intricacies of buyout calculations and required approvals. The buyout amount can fluctuate based on accumulating fees and ongoing payments. A seasoned financier can help expedite this process.
Complex Scenarios
In some instances, both your previous and new financiers might temporarily share rights to your invoices until all balances are cleared, though this is not commonly practiced.
Questions to Ponder Before Committing
- Is simultaneous collaboration with multiple invoice finance companies possible?
- What are the terms for changing providers, including any penalties?
- How does the new provider handle transaction processing and duration?
- What is the structure of communication with the finance company?
- Are there responsibilities for mailing costs of invoices?
- Does the provider charge extra for credit checks or new client setups?
- At what point does the provider start withholding reserves?