What happened
Elavon (U.S. Bank’s payments arm) and Liberis have launched Quick Capital in the U.S.—a funding offer embedded directly in Elavon’s merchant portal. The program expands an existing European relationship and aims to reach 275,000+ U.S. Elavon merchants with application flows that auto-populate from payment data and deliver decisions “in minutes.” Funding is positioned as fast and flexible, with minimal paperwork, and is available now.
Elavon’s own explainer makes the product structure explicit: advances are based on past sales, and payments flex with daily card volumes. In other words, this is a revenue-based finance or merchant cash advance product, not a traditional loan.
Trade coverage highlights that Quick Capital targets common use cases such as inventory, tax payments, marketing, expansion, and general cash-flow smoothing, with particular relevance to healthcare, retail, services, and restaurants.
Why this matters
Embedded offers inside a merchant processor’s dashboard reduce customer acquisition costs to near zero. The data is already available, the merchant is already logged in, and the application is already pre-filled. That convenience is powerful—and it removes the need for third-party brokers who would otherwise extract commissions for doing little more than making introductions.
Elavon, as a subsidiary of U.S. Bank, serves 1.3M+ customers across the U.S., Europe, and Canada. With that distribution footprint, Quick Capital has the potential to become one of the more significant embedded working-capital channels in the U.S.
The upside
- Speed & low friction. Embedded applications can deliver decisions and funding in a fraction of the time of bank loans.
- Cash-flow-matched repayments. Payment amounts flex with card sales, which can feel less painful than fixed amortizing payments during slower weeks.
- Less data hunting. Because Elavon already sees volumes, chargebacks, and seasonality, underwriting requires far less manual paperwork.
The catch
- Not a bank loan. Revenue-based financing is priced via factor rates, not APRs. The effective APR can be significantly higher once calculated. Merchants should always model affordability and compare apples-to-apples before committing.
- Daily or near-daily pulls still drain cash. “Flexible” does not mean painless. Deductions from each batch reduce liquidity, especially if margins are already thin.
- Stacking is dangerous. Taking on an additional advance when an existing MCA or revenue-based facility is already in place can accelerate a cash-flow spiral. Easy approvals can tempt merchants into overleveraging.
Practical guidelines
- Demand transparency. Request the total payback amount, expected term, estimated APR, daily/weekly retrieval percentage, fees, and prepayment rules.
- Fund ROI, not losses. Use proceeds for proven inventory turns, seasonal purchase orders, or marketing spend with clear CAC-to-LTV math. Do not use short-term financing to cover chronic operating losses.
- Cap debt service. Set a maximum percentage of average daily sales that can be allocated to debt payments, and walk away if an offer exceeds it.
- Refinance, don’t stack. Replace existing facilities rather than piling on new ones.
- Check cheaper options if time allows. Bank and SBA loans remain the lowest-cost source of capital for well-qualified merchants without urgent timelines. If B2B invoices are outstanding, factoring is often a better fit than MCAs.
- Don’t be tempted by brokers. If a broker approaches promising a “better” Quick Capital deal, remember: you’re already the processor’s direct customer. That puts you in the strongest negotiating position. No broker has access to a secret, cheaper version of the same product.
Who’s likely a fit
- Card-heavy businesses (retail, restaurants, services, healthcare) with predictable swipe volume and short-cycle ROI opportunities such as inventory or seasonal ramps.
- Merchants who prioritize speed, minimal paperwork, and repayment flexibility over the absolute lowest APR.
Bottom line
Another day, another embedded financing solution. Quick Capital reduces friction by offering funding where merchants already manage payments. That is valuable. But speed is not a substitute for affordability. The key is disciplined use: know the cost, set guardrails, and ensure funding fuels growth rather than masking deeper problems.