How Gibraltar Capital Advance Became Wellen Capital
June 4, 2018
Gibraltar Capital Advance announced today that it has changed its name to Wellen Capital. The company had been a sister company of Gibraltar Business Capital, but since that company was acquired in March of this year, Gibraltar Capital Advance has operated independently.
“The Gibraltar name has been well-regarded as a leader in the alternative finance market for many years,” said Jim Teppen, President of what is now known as Wellen Capital. “We entrust it to our former colleagues at Gibraltar Business Capital, knowing they’ll successfully carry the brand’s tradition forward.”
Wellen is no one’s surname at the company, according to Chief Revenue Officer Steve O’Connor.
“One of the things that makes us unique in the capital advance space is that we’re from Chicago,” O’Connor said. “We’re a midwestern company, and the way that we crafted this name had a lot to do with words and phrases and images that were midwestern, even though it’s not obvious.”
O’Connor also noted that Wellen is easy to say and easy to type. In addition to the name change, the company also announced today the WellenScore Application Scoring System, Wellen’s proprietary, data-driven system for evaluating applications.
O’Connor acknowledged that alternative finance companies have been using algorithms to make funding decisions for years, with varying degrees of success.
“Our approach was always to gather enough data first to make sure that we had enough information to inform a data enabled decisioning model,” O’Connor said of Wellen, which was founded in 2012. “And that’s not the kind of thing you can just do overnight.”
The company has been using this system now for more than six months. This doesn’t mean that Wellen now relies exclusively on computers to make funding decisions.
“Our process leverages automation and data-enabled decisions, but isn’t just a ‘black box,’” said Wellen Chief Operating Officer Ed Job. “Good funding decisions are made by working with our sales partners to gather needed data and decide how to best structure a capital solution for our customers.”
Wellen, which provides merchant cash advance exclusively, is based in Chicago and employs 30 people.
Gibraltar Capital Advance Rebrands as Wellen Capital
June 4, 2018
Chicago, IL – June 4, 2018. Today, Gibraltar Capital Advance announced they have changed their name to Wellen Capital, LLC. Following the successful sale of related company Gibraltar Business Capital, LLC in February of this year, parent company TZ Mountain Capital Holdings, LLC began the process of re-branding Gibraltar Capital Advance.
Wellen is a data-enabled direct funding source in the merchant and business capital advance market. Since its founding in 2012, the company has experienced robust and steady growth, establishing itself as a leader in the small business finance market.
“The Gibraltar name has been well-regarded as a leader in the alternative finance market for many years. We entrust it to our former colleagues at Gibraltar Business Capital, knowing they’ll successfully carry the brand’s tradition forward” said Jim Teppen, President of Wellen. “We look forward to continuing to serve our customers, sales partners, and investors under a new name that we think embodies the values and culture of our company” said Teppen.
Along with the announcement of the new identity, Wellen is announcing the launch of WellenScore – a custom machine-learning based system for quickly and consistently conducting diligence reviews of small business funding applications. “The WellenScore system allows us to accurately analyze hundreds of individual elements of an application, and provide a decision back to our sales partners much more quickly than ever.” said Ed Job, Wellen’s Chief Operating Officer. “Our process leverages automation and data-enabled decisions, but isn’t just a ‘black box’” said Job. “Good funding decisions are made by working with our sales partners to gather needed data, and decide how to best structure a capital solution for our customers.”
About Wellen: Wellen Capital, LLC is a leading provider of working capital solutions to U.S. small businesses. Headquartered in Chicago, Wellen’s principal equityholders are Satori Capital, LLC of Dallas, TX and CCCC Growth Fund, LLC. of South Pasadena, CA.
Contact: Steven O’Connor
Phone: 224.374.1519
Email: soconnor@wellen.com
Shopify Capital Issued $60.4M in Merchant Cash Advances in Q1
May 1, 2018
Shopify Capital, Shopify’s small business funding arm, issued $60.4 million in merchant cash advances in Q1, according to the company’s earnings report, an increase of more than 300% year-over-year. The company has advanced $230 million to merchants since April 2016.
On the company’s earnings call, Canaccord Genuity equity researcher David Hynes, inquired about the patterns of seasonal demand one could expect for the company’s merchant cash advances.
“So in terms of seasonality on Shopify Capital,” said Shopify COO Harley Finkelstein, “it’s important to note that the use of proceeds for Shopify Capital for most of our merchants tend to be in the realm of inventory or marketing spend, which we quite like, because that leads to more sales, which makes it easier for them to return the capital to us.
“Obviously, there’s the seasonality of capital reflecting the seasonality of retail in general, which is certainly more of a Q4 issue than it is a Q1 issue,” he added.
Canaccord’s Hynes also referred to Shopify’s product as a loan but was corrected by Finkelstein.
“Just keep in mind, these are not loans, these are cash advances, so I want to be very clear about that,” Finkelstein explained.
Shopify is a Canadian e-commerce company headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario. It is also the name of its proprietary e-commerce platform for online stores and retail point-of-sale systems
View the company’s earnings report here
Merchant Advance Capital Closes $30 Million Debt Facility
March 15, 2018
Canadian Merchant Advance Capital closed a $30 million debt facility from Comvest Credit Partners today.
“This is giving us significant runway,” Merchant Advance Capital CEO David Gens told AltFinanceDaily. “For the next 12 months in particular, we’ve got great visibility as far as where our incremental capital is going to come from. This will allow us to focus less on fundraising and more on just building the business.”
Founded in 2010, Merchant Advance Capital offers several small business financing products including fixed term loans and business lines of credit. It also provides something called “The Good Cents Loan,” which Gens said he would like see more applicants for.
These loans are designed for businesses “that will positively impact the community or environment around them,” according to the company website. They require a more thorough application and the entrepreneur needs to convey to Merchant Advance Capital how the funds will help further their more socially or environmentally responsible cause. The company has only made a few of these loans which Gens said do not make money because the rates are so low.
This is the largest facility Merchant Advance Capital has gotten to date. However, Gens said that the business is primarily equity funded so that even as the business uses this new debt facility, it will still have more equity than debt.
Merchant Advance Capital generates most of its business through ISOs and partners and has two offices, one in Vancouver and the other in Toronto. Of about 50 employees, two-thirds work at the company headquarters in Vancouver.
6th Avenue Capital Secures $60 Million Commitment For Merchant Cash Advance Funding
November 2, 2017Highly Experienced Executive Team Offers Flexible Financing Options to Small Businesses
New York City – November 2, 2017 – 6th Avenue Capital, LLC (“6th Avenue Capital”), a leading provider of small business financing solutions, announced today its securement of a $60 million commitment from a large institutional investor. The investor made their commitment based on 6th Avenue Capital’s industry-leading underwriting, compliance standards and processes. 6th Avenue Capital will draw from this commitment to offer merchant cash advances to small businesses through its nationwide network of Independent Sales Organizations (“ISOs”) and other strategic partnerships, such as banks and small business associations.
6th Avenue Capital launched formal operations in 2016 to help finance small businesses that are often ineligible for funding due to traditional underwriting criteria. 6th Avenue Capital evaluates each application for funding individually and keeps the merchant’s short and long-term needs in mind including, most importantly, what they can afford. 6th Avenue Capital also understands that small businesses may need funding quickly. The company’s data-driven underwriting processes, expertise and technology can give the merchant secure and equitable approvals of qualified requests and funding within hours.
Leading the team, CEO Christine Chang oversees all strategic aspects of 6th Avenue Capital. She also serves as COO to sister company Nexlend Capital Management, LLC. She brings more than 20 years experience in institutional asset management, including alternative lending. Previously, Chang served as Chief Compliance Officer at Alternative Investment Management, LLC, COO at New York Private Bank & Trust and Vice President at Credit Suisse. She serves on the board of Blueprint Capital Advisors, LLC and Bottomless Closet, a not-for-profit empowering economic self-sufficiency in disadvantaged NYC women.
“Our mission at 6th Avenue Capital is to help small businesses grow, and we continue to expand our existing network of ISO and strategic partners to ensure these businesses have access to capital in hours,” said Chang. “Our leadership team of financial industry experts has extensive experience navigating multiple economic cycles. We know how to serve merchants and how to deliver quickly while meeting the highest operational standards for our investors.”
COO Darren Schulman joined the team in March 2017. Schulman is a 20-year veteran of the alternative finance and banking industries. He is responsible for oversight of 6th Avenue Capital’s origination, underwriting, operations and collections, as well as strategic initiatives. Schulman served previously as COO at Capify (formerly AmeriMerchant), a global small business financing company, and President and CFO at MRS Associates, a Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company specializing in collections. In addition, Schulman was an Executive Vice President at MTB Bank.
“We form strong relationships with the merchant and consider it essential for our underwriters to speak to every merchant, on every deal, regardless of its size,” said Schulman. “We also make our underwriters available for discussions with ISOs whenever necessary. We are proud to offer competitive volume-based commissions, buyback rates and white label solutions.”
About 6th Avenue Capital, LLC
6th Avenue Capital is changing the small business financing landscape by offering a data-driven underwriting process and fast access to capital. The company employs a unique blend of industry experts and is committed to the highest operating standards, high touch merchant service, including a policy of direct merchant access to underwriters. 6th Avenue Capital is a sister company of Nexlend Capital Management, LLC, a fintech investment management firm founded in 2014 and focused on marketplace lending (consumer loans). For more information, visit www.6thavenuecapital.com.
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Square Capital’s Jackie Reses Reveals Why They Really Gave Up Merchant Cash Advances
April 14, 2016
At Lendit, Bloomberg Reporter Emily Chang asked Square Capital head Jacqueline Reses to explain the real reason behind Square’s shift from merchant cash advances to loans.
Reses said that it was not a customer issue, but an investor one. “This industry and this conference more than anyone understands the nuance between MCAs and loans,” she said. “From an investor side, that’s really where the savings are between the form of an MCA and the form of a loan, in that there’s an actual repayment date.”
Reading between the lines, she seemed to be saying that investors like certainty and exact terms whereas the traditional merchant cash advance product was harder to sell off or securitize because they lack a defined element of time.
Fast loan approvals shouldn’t be criminalized
Referring to the criticism that online lenders have been getting recently for their fast approvals, Chang specifically asked if companies like OnDeck were approving loans too quickly.
Reses responded, “I don’t think the ability to execute something quickly, smoothly, transparently, should be criminalized as something that requires oversight, and so I think being good at something should be well regarded.” She later added, “I think the notion that credit decisions being swift is a problem is just misguided.”
Transparency
Reses used the word “transparency” several times but in explaining such did not reference the disclosure of Annual Percentage Rates even once. Instead she mentioned the importance of spelling out the total dollar cost to the merchants, subtly reconfirming the findings that are coming from many other alternative lenders.
Was the move from MCA just about investors though?
Read our initial assessment and expanded theory.
Watch the full “fireside chat” video below:
Capital Gurus Launches Affiliate Portal 2.0: AI-Powered Transparency, Speed, and Growth for Partners
September 2, 2025Las Vegas, NV, September 1, 2025 — Capital Gurus today announced the launch of its Affiliate Portal 2.0, a next-generation platform designed to strengthen trust, increase speed to funding and affiliate revenue share payouts, and enhance both customer and partner experiences through advanced technology.
The upgraded portal introduces real-time analytics, AI-driven recommendations, and a streamlined dashboard, empowering affiliates to perform at their best while helping small businesses access capital more quickly.
Building Trust Through Transparency
Capital Gurus Affiliate Portal 2.0 delivers clear, real-time visibility into lead status, funding progress, and commission tracking. Affiliates can now monitor every stage of the funding process, ensuring confidence and clarity in their earnings.
Speed to Funding and Payouts
With automated workflows and improved underwriting integrations, small businesses referred through affiliates can secure funding faster than ever. Commission payouts are also accelerated, giving partners access to their revenue share in as little as a few days.
AI to Elevate the Customer & Partner Experience
The portal leverages AI-powered insights to:
• Automated underwriting
• Marketing support to upload bulk files
• Co-branded and White Labeled experiences available
Analytics Dashboard for Smarter Decisions
A new affiliate performance dashboard enables partners to track:
• Lead volume and conversion rates
• Funding speed and approval metrics
• Revenue share earnings over time
These insights enable affiliates to refine their strategies and optimize returns.
Driving Growth for Small Businesses and Partners
“Our mission with Affiliate Portal 2.0 is simple—give our partners the transparency, tools, and technology they need to help small businesses thrive while maximizing their earning potential,” said Bruno Santos, Co-Founder at Capital Gurus. “This upgrade is not just about technology—it’s about building trust, increasing speed, and empowering success.”
Availability
Affiliate Portal 2.0 is live now for all current partners. Influencers, creators, and industry advocates who serve small business audiences are encouraged to join the Capital Gurus Affiliate Program.
📌 Learn more and sign up: Visit Our Affiliate Page
Media Contact:
Michael Tryon
Head of Partnership
Capital Gurus
mtryon@capitalgurus.com
From the CERN Large Hadron Collider to Funding Working Capital Loans to SMBs
August 20, 2025When AltFinanceDaily stumbled upon a scoop that DoorDash had begun offering merchant cash advances in late 2021, the tech and financing team behind it had not been on anyone’s radar. That company was Parafin which at the time appeared to be a startup comprised of former Robinhood engineers. But the backstory is a bit more wild because its CEO and Co-founder Sahill Poddar previously worked on getting his PhD by discovering the Higgs boson particle at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. His credentials include a Doctorate (summa cum laude) in Particle Physics at European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN), Geneva, Switzerland and before that he was a Visiting Researcher for the Max-Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics in Germany. But today, at Parafin, his company makes $10 billion in funding offers to small businesses EACH DAY. The company has now funded more than 30,000 businesses since inception.
Turner Novak at The Peel secured Poddar as a guest on how Parafin came to be and it’s a must watch.
