Seek Capital Review 2024

Seek Capital Overview

Founded in 2014 with a mission to help small businesses get the funding they need to reach their full potential, Seek Capital isn’t your traditional lender. Instead, the company specializes in third-party funding procurement for the neglected and underserved groups such as startups and early-stage businesses in search of alternative financing solutions.

However, if you run an established small business, you’ll still be able to apply for this provider’s funding options. Alongside its primary service, Seek Capital has grown to offer a variety of business consulting services such as creating a business plan, developing a business entity, and launching a website.

Boasting a 92% approval rate, Seek Capital focuses on providing customized funding solutions to suit the financial needs of any specific small business. While the funding procurement company may charge high fees for its service, the convenience still outweighs the cost for many business owners.

So, how does getting a loan through Seek Capital work? You start by requesting any amount of financing between $5,000 and $500,000 and stating the loan purpose. Once you’ve submitted all the necessary documentation and additional information, Seek Capital will move into the process of underwriting.

From there, the company’s financial experts will determine what type of small business financing you’re eligible for, come up with a custom funding plan, and help you get a loan from its lending partners.

Seek Capital Financing

Seek Capital offers several types of financing for eligible small-business owners and entrepreneurs. While funding options include SBA loans, term loans, business lines of credit, and equipment financing, the most common loan purposes are working capital, debt consolidation, expansion, payroll, advertising, and equipment purchasing.

Bear in mind that borrower qualifications may vary widely depending on the financial product. While there are common eligibility qualifications for each funding type procured by Seek Capital, it’s important to remember that these are nothing more than general requirements.

Also, some of the company’s lending partners may have different eligibility criteria for qualifying applicants. Should this be the case, a funding advisor will reach out and discuss any additional requirements with you.

Term Loans

To qualify for a term loan between $5,000 and $500,000 from any of Seek Capital’s lending partners your business should be in operations for a minimum of three years with annual annual revenues of $300,000. Also, a personal credit score of 680 is recommended.

Lines of Credit

As far as business lines of credit go, you won’t be able to qualify unless your business has been active for at least a year with a minimum annual revenue of $180,000. Applicants with FICO scores of 630 and lighter have a better chance of qualifying. Possible borrowing amounts range from $5,000 to $150,000.

Equipment Financing

For the best chances of getting an amount between $10,000 and $150,000 in equipment financing, you’ll need a personal credit score of at least 600, a minimum of $130,000 in annual revenue, and at least two years of business operation.

SBA Loans

Given its high borrowing limits and low fees, there’s no wonder why Small Business Administration loans are favored by business owners. However, qualifying for this type of funding may be quite difficult. According to Seek Capital, small business owners applying for an SBA loan should have at least $180,000 in annual business revenue, a minimum of 2 years in business operation, and a credit score of at least 680.

Seek Capital Application Process

Applying for funding through Seek Capital is quick and easy. To start the process, you’ll need to fill out a short online questionnaire. In the first stage of the application, you’ll provide your desired borrowing amount, loan purpose, your full name, your credit score range, the name of your business, time in business, and monthly revenues.

After you’ve submitted all the basic data, Seek Capital will review it and get back to you for a funding consultation. This stage of the application will be conducted over the phone, and you may be asked to provide additional information on your business or yourself.

As soon as Seek Capital obtains all of the information it needs, the company’s underwriting experts will review it and come up with a funding estimate. This estimate will outline the borrowing amount that you’ve prequalified for, and the rates and term that come with it. According to customers, the funding estimate takes no more than two hours to land in your inbox.

Should you decide to accept the preliminary offer, Seek Capital will proceed with submitting applications on your behalf to obtain the funding from third-party lenders. You can expect to receive your loan in one to three weeks. In some cases, however, funding may be available in less than 24 hours.

What Information Do I Need to Apply?

Depending on the type of financing you decide to apply for, the approval process may slightly differ. Apart from some basic information about you and your business, here’s what Seek Capital may ask you to submit:

• Proof of identity
• Proof of residence
• Tax returns (business and personal)
• Bank statements (business and personal)
• Business and personal credit scores
• Profit & loss statements
• Balance sheet
• Business debt schedule
• Articles of Incorporation or Articles of Organization
• Employer Identification Number (EIN)
• Signed personal guarantee

Another great thing about Seek Capital is that, should you fail to qualify for funding based on the preliminary information, the company may refer you to other lending partners to obtain the funding your business needs.

Seek Capital Loan Features

Seek Capital offers term loans, lines of credit, equipment financing, and SBA loans ranging from $5,000 and $500,000. The terms for each financial product may vary by lender. In some cases, borrowers may even be eligible for 0% introductory APRs. Applicants with the most solid business profiles and best credit histories and most solid business profiles will be offered funding options with lowest rates.

Loan Amount and APR details

Term loans, and especially, short-term loans have fast approval and funding times. One of the best things about term loans is that they can be used for a variety of business purposes. Rates and terms can differ significantly depending on the desired loan type, the applicant’s credit quality, the cash flow of the underlying business, and the individual lender’s eligibility requirements.

While this funding type is much easier to procure for established businesses, Seek Capital makes sure that even startup companies can get short-term financing options.

Here’s an in-depth breakdown of the company's term loan features:

• Loan amount: $5,000 to $500,000
• APR: 5%-25% (0% intro APR for up to 12 months)
• Down payment: 0%-25%
• Origination fee: 9.99%
• Other fees: Application fee, late payment fee
• Loan term: Three months to 5 years
• Repayment options: Flexible

This funding provider also offers good deals on credit lines as an option for unsecured startup business loans. Much like a credit card, a line of credit comes with a specific credit limit. It lets you withdraw multiple amounts of money as you need them and repay only the amounts you’ve withdrawn.

This funding type is a great choice for business owners who need cash fast and would also like continual access to more money in the future. Note that you are able to make additional withdrawals as long as you pay down your balance on time.

Here’s an overview of Seek Capital’s credit line features:

• Loan amount: $5,000 to $150,000
• APR: 5%-25%
• Origination fee: 9.99%
• Other fees: Application fee, maintenance fee, over-the-limit fee, late payment fee
• Loan term: Up to 5 years
• Repayment options: Flexible

Equipment financing is also among popular funding options. Borrowers think of equipment financing loans as an investment in revenue-generating assets. Ideally, new equipment increases the overall business’s efficiency which leads to higher revenue, so the initial cost of equipment financing can be easily absorbed.

Bear in mind that the lender will have a lien against the equipment in question, as protection in case of default.

Here’s a quick overview of equipment financing features:

• Loan amount: $10,000 to $150,000
• APR: 3%-7%
• Down payment: 0-20%
• Origination fee: 9.99%
• Other fees: Application fee, late payment fee
• Loan term: Variable typically up to useful life of equipment
• Repayment options: Flexible

Although SBA offers assistance to small business owners, it doesn’t provide loans. Instead, the agency works as a matchmaker between borrowers and lenders.

Funding providers are mostly attracted by the SBA’s 85% loan guarantee. To protect itself from the same guarantee, the agency has a number of borrower restrictions. In general, these exclude startups and earliest-stage businesses, therefore, an SBA loan is usually best suited for businesses with at least two to three years of experience.

• Loan amount: $50,000 to $100,000 (up to $5 million in some cases)
• APR: 4%-13%
• Down payment: 5-20%
• Other fees: Packaging fee, guaranty fee
• Loan term: five to 10 years for general purposes (up to 25 years for real estate)
• Repayment options: Flexible

Eligible and Non-Eligible Businesses

Considering that Seek Capital isn’t a traditional lender but a third-party funding provider, its eligibility requirements are highly dependent on the individual lender’s criteria. It’s true that applicants with high personal credit scores who run established businesses with predictable cash flow will have a better chance of getting reasonable rates.

However, given that this funding provider’s approval rate is an extraordinary 92%, it’s clear that Seek makes sure to procure the options even for the applicants that are non-eligible for funding elsewhere.

Different types of loans are available to different businesses. Every company has a unique financial situation, and that’s why this funding intermediary strives to provide a personalized funding plan for each of its loan applicants.

Unlike most traditional and online lenders, Seek Capital doesn’t even have a list of eligible and non-eligible industries and occupations. Instead, this online business funding provider tries to make a perfect match even for the businesses that aren’t financially savvy.

Seek Capital Repayment Terms

As far as repayment goes, options will vary depending on the loan product that you’ve decided to go for. While SBA loans typically come with monthly repayment schedules, short-term loans and business lines of credit and short-term loans usually have weekly repayment terms.

One of the downsides is that you can’t keep up with repayment progress by accessing an online dashboard. Instead, you need to get in touch with Seek Capital’s representatives to check if your payments are in order.

It’s also important to mention that this loan provider reports its customers’ payments both to consumer and business credit bureaus. Bear in mind that this can be tough on your credit as all hard pulls will be visible on your personal and business credit reports. Additionally, should you fail to make an on-time payment, both your consumer and business scores will be affected.

The company works as an open-ended funding source. In other words, if the funding that you’ve received from this lender fits your needs and you’re able to repay what you owe on time, you’ll be able to apply for more business capital from Seek Capital in the future.

The Bottom Line

Thanks to its strong network of lending partners, Seek is able to offer a unique funding plan for each borrower in need of business financing assistance. A simple application process, personalized funding estimates, and a highly professional team of business funding advisors make this lending intermediary’s service stand out from the crowd.

Business owners who are too busy or unwilling to tackle the often-confusing loan application can’t go wrong with this company. While it’s true that Seek does all the hard work for you, keep in mind that the service of funding procurement comes at a cost.

Before you settle on certain loan terms, make sure to take note of the expenses such as origination fees, termination costs, and application fees. Evaluate the expenses linked to working with Seek Capital and the return on investment to determine whether you’ve made the right choice.

Overall, if you are an entrepreneur or a new small-business owner who has been rejected for a loan from more traditional lenders and needs the money in less than three weeks, we suggest you explore Seek Capital’s relatively fast business funding solutions.