Merchant Cash Advances or "MCAs" are a unique form of rapidly growing finance predominantly used in retail services such as restaurants, health clubs, and those heavily dependent consumer credit cards for payment.  Where as most forms of alternative commercial finance deal with B2B transactions, Merchant Cash Advances usual address the problems associated with equipment acquisition in the retail sector when bank financing or equipment leasing is not available.

Unlike a business loan using current assets such as accounts or inventory as collateral,  Merchant Cash Advances represent advances against your "future" credit card sales.  Though more expensive, MCAs are much like factoring, since Merchant Cash Advances are not loans but the actual "purchase" of your future credit card receipts.  MCA providers will audit your current and past credit card sales (usually back for 6 months) and calculate a reliable average on which to base their "advance".  In almost every case, the MCA will require that they become your credit card processing company.