We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with confidence. And while our site doesn’t feature every company or financial product available on the market, we’re proud that the guidance we offer, the information we provide and the tools we create are objective, independent, straightforward — and free.
So how do we make money? Our partners compensate us. This may influence which products we review and write about (and where those products appear on the site), but it in no way affects our recommendations or advice, which are grounded in thousands of hours of research. Our partners cannot pay us to guarantee favorable reviews of their products or services. Here is a list of our partners.
Many or all of the products featured here are from our partners who compensate us. This may influence which products we write about and where and how the product appears on a page. However, this does not influence our evaluations. Our opinions are our own. Here is a list of our partners and here's how we make money.
Our Take
4.2
NerdWallet rating
The bottom line:
iBusiness Funding is well suited for established businesses with good credit that prefer a streamlined application process.
NerdWallet's small-business loans content, including ratings, recommendations and reviews, is overseen by a team of writers and editors who specialize in business lending. Their work has appeared in The Associated Press, The Washington Post, MarketWatch, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur, ABC News, MSN and other national and local media outlets. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet's strict guidelines for editorial integrity to ensure accuracy and fairness in our coverage.
iBusiness Funding, which acquired Funding Circle in 2024, is an online lender that offers small-business loans of up to $500,000. These term loans can be a good option for established business owners that want competitive rates, but also need fast funding.
iBusiness Funding is known for its streamlined application process and multiple loan options. In addition to its business term loan, iBusiness Funding acts as a marketplace, connecting business owners to other lenders for USDA and SBA 7(a) loans.
This review will focus on iBusiness Funding's term loans.
iBusiness Funding loan qualifications
Credit score:
660
or higher.
Time in business:
24
months
Annual revenue: $
50000
or more.
Consider iBusiness Funding if you:
✔️ Are looking to expand your business or refinance costly debt.
As fast as three days. An underwriting decision can be delivered in 24 to 48 hours. Once you sign the loan agreement, you'll typically receive your funds the following business day.
Where iBusiness Funding stands out
Competitive rates compared with other online lenders
%. This lender doesn’t charge a prepayment penalty, and paying off your loan early can save interest costs.
Faster processing than banks
It can take just a few minutes to apply online for an iBusiness Funding loan, and you could receive funds within three days. For comparison, it can take weeks to months to be approved for a loan from a bank.
Banks and credit unions are the more common sources of an SBA loan, but iBusiness Funding is unique in that it’s an alternative lender offering SBA 7(a) loans.
💬 From our Nerds: Consider the rare opportunity to get an SBA loan from an alternative lender
"Getting an SBA loan from an online lender like iBusiness Funding means you can get access to the many benefits of this coveted type of small-business loan but with a lower minimum FICO score than many banks will expect — 640 compared with 690+ — and with a streamlined online application process."
Karrin Sehmbi, editor & content strategist, Small Business
Where iBusiness Funding falls short
Not for new businesses
iBusiness Funding requires at least
24
months of business history. For comparison, the alternatives we list below, OnDeck and Fora Financial, require only
12
months and
6
months of business history, respectively.
High qualification standards
You’ll need a personal credit score of at least
660
to qualify for a iBusiness Funding loan. Some other online lenders, however, accept scores of 600 or lower.
iBusiness Funding also requires a lien on your business assets, which may include equipment, vehicles or inventory. Like most other business lenders, it also requires a personal guarantee from the primary business owners, which gives the lender the right to pursue your personal assets if your business fails to repay the loan.
Although you can get a loan from iBusiness Funding in a matter of days, there are other online lenders, like OnDeck and Bluevine, with even faster funding times.
OnDeck offers business term loans up to $250,000 with repayment terms up to
24
months. Although interest rates will likely be higher with OnDeck than iBusiness Funding, they have more flexible qualification requirements and faster funding times.
To qualify for a loan with OnDeck, you'll need at least
12
months in business, $100,000 in annual revenue and a credit score of
625
.
These requirements may make OnDeck a better option for newer businesses and those with bad credit.
Fora Financial is an online lender that extends term loans of up to $1.5 million with terms up to
18
months. This lender has one of the most accessible credit score minimums for online term loans at
570
and requires only
6
months of time in business. And instead of charging prepayment penalties, Fora offers discounts for paying your loan off early.
Fora uses factor rates in place of interest rates, so total APR is likely to be higher than other lenders in this space, plus you’ll make payments daily or weekly, as opposed to the monthly payments that iBusiness requires.
NerdWallet’s review process evaluates and rates small-business loan products from traditional banks and online lenders. We collect over 30 data points on each lender using company websites and public documents. We may also go through a lender’s initial application flow and reach out to company representatives. NerdWallet writers and editors conduct a full fact check and update annually, but also make updates throughout the year as necessary.
Our star ratings award points to lenders that offer small-business friendly features, including: transparency of rates and terms, flexible payment options, fast funding times, accessible customer service, reporting of payments to business credit bureaus and responsible lending practices. We weigh these factors based on our assessment of which are the most important to small-business owners and how meaningfully they impact borrowers’ experiences.
iBusiness Funding acquired Funding Circle in 2024. It has connected approximately 135,000 businesses to over $20 billion in financing since its launch in 2010. Since 2013, the lender has been accredited by the Better Business Bureau, where it has an A+ rating.
iBusiness Funding is not a bank. The company issues term loans using funding from accredited investors. It also offers SBA loans up to $5 million.
iBusiness Funding typically conducts soft inquiries on loan applicants, which doesn’t impact your credit score. The lender may perform a hard inquiry on general partnership businesses, however.
The lender may also check your business credit reports; this will not impact your personal credit.