Short-term working capital is secured cash for an operating company with a defined repayment event inside one to twelve months — not a thirty-year SBA amortization and not a three-year unsecured installment.
These arranged operating-company facilities are separate from originated investment-property debt; use loans from $2 million to $10 million for an apartment, industrial, storage, or rental-pool request.
Amounts typically run $250,000–$15 million. Terms are 1–12 months with weekly or bi-weekly repayment on qualified files. Collateral can include accounts receivable, inventory, equipment, and/or real estate. Pricing is quoted per file.
Jaken Finance Group originates investment-property loans. For operating-company working capital we arrange short-term secured credit through our capital network. We do not name capital sources in marketing materials.
Request working capital terms → · Call (833) 264-7776
In the form notes, include TTM revenue, use of funds, collateral available, and when you need to close.
Program terms
| Parameter | Short-term working capital |
|---|---|
| Amount | $250,000–$15 million (quoted per file) |
| Term | 1–12 months |
| Repayment | Weekly or bi-weekly on qualified files |
| Collateral | AR, inventory, equipment, real estate — senior or junior, quoted per file |
| Sizing heuristic | Up to ~10% of TTM revenue or ~1× TTM EBITDA |
| Speed | 3–10 business days on a complete file |
| Pricing | Quoted per file — not the unsecured 6%–18% band or hard money 8.99%–13.5% |
| Coverage | All 50 states — U.S. operating companies |
| What Jaken Finance Group originates | Hard money, bridge, DSCR, construction on investment property |
This is business-purpose credit for a for-profit operating company. It is not consumer debt, not a merchant cash advance replacement under $50,000, and not bridge financing on investment real estate.
Who this fits
Start here when:
- Revenue is roughly $10 million+ and the need is $250,000+
- You have a dated repayment event — inventory sell-through, a PO collection, invoice payment, or an acquisition takeout
- You can pledge AR, inventory, equipment, or real estate and document it cleanly
- SBA timing will miss payroll, a supplier deadline, or a signed purchase agreement
- You want non-dilutive capital instead of selling equity for a six-month gap
Use a different product when:
| Situation | Better path |
|---|---|
| $50K–$500K, no collateral, 3/5/7 years | Unsecured term loans |
| Cheap long-term working capital, 45–90 day clock OK | SBA working capital |
| Serial-numbered machine and vendor invoice | Equipment financing at 6%–14% |
| Non-owner-occupied property bridge | Bridge loans for investors |
| Daily MCA drafts you want to kill | Refinance a merchant cash advance first, then size long-term takeout |
Pick your use case
| Your gap | Read next |
|---|---|
| Bulk inventory, seasonal stock, supplier prepay | Inventory financing |
| Confirmed customer PO, need to pay supplier first | Purchase order financing |
| Invoices out, cash stuck in AR | Accounts receivable financing |
| Buy a company or membership interest before 7(a) lands | Business acquisition bridge loans |
| SBA too slow, unsecured too small, MCA too expensive | Short-term working capital vs SBA |
How sizing usually works
Lenders size operating-company files on cash the business already earns, not hope.
Two common starting points:
- Revenue band — up to about 10% of trailing-twelve-month revenue
- Earnings band — up to about 1× TTM EBITDA
Neither is a guarantee. A $42 million revenue manufacturer with thin margins may not support the same advance as a $18 million services company with sticky contracts and fast-paying customers. The file still needs a collateral stack and a repayment path that matches the amortization schedule.
Worked illustration: contract ramp (composite)
Illustration only — not a live quote.
A $26 million commercial cleaning operator wins four new enterprise contracts. Mobilization costs — hiring, uniforms, supplies — hit 45 days before the first client payment. Internal cash is committed to existing sites.
- Need: $1.8 million for nine months of ramp labor and materials
- Collateral: Assigned receivables from the new contracts plus a corporate guaranty
- Repayment: Bi-weekly sweeps as new sites bill
- Exit: Self-liquidating as the contract base stabilizes; optional SBA working capital refi later if the file fits bank timing
The upside is keeping equity and not stacking merchant cash advances at factor rates. The cost is short paper priced for speed and structure, quoted per file — not prime-plus SBA pricing.
Worked illustration: inventory buy (composite)
Illustration only — not a live quote.
A $19 million specialty distributor secures a 12% bulk discount from a vendor if payment lands in ten days. Normal terms are net-45. Sell-through on the SKU line runs 90–120 days.
- Need: $950,000 for six months
- Collateral: Inventory and existing AR borrowing base
- Repayment: Weekly as the SKU line turns
See the full inventory mechanics on inventory financing.
What we need in a complete file
- Two years of business financials or a clean TTM package
- Use of funds in dollars — not “general working capital” without a schedule
- Collateral schedule — AR aging, inventory summary, equipment list, or real estate if in the stack
- Repayment source — which invoices, which PO, which sale, or which permanent takeout
- Clock — supplier deadline, payroll date, or LOI expiration
Upload what you have on the commercial financing form. Partial files can still start a conversation; complete files move faster.
How this sits beside SBA and unsecured
Many operators run a two-step stack:
- Close now with short-term secured working capital when the opportunity or supplier will not wait
- Refinance or replace with SBA 7(a) or an SBA CAPLine when the cheaper facility is ready
That is the same “close now, take out later” logic as bridge now, SBA later on commercial buildings — except this layer sits on the operating company, not the deed.
Deep comparison: short-term working capital vs SBA.
Prime moved, and only the SBA takeout feels it directly
Sponsors who plan a 7(a) takeout should date their rate. The bank prime loan rate was 7.00% on October 2, 2026. It was 6.75% on September 16, 2026, and 7.00% on September 17, 2026. On October 2, 2025, prime was 7.25%.
A 7(a) working-capital note can still be the cheaper long-term home when you qualify and you can wait 45 to 90 days. The facility Jaken Finance Group arranges is the piece that can fund in 3 to 10 business days. Its price is quoted per file. It is not indexed to prime in these materials, and it is not the investment-property band of 8.99%–13.5%.
A 504 loan does not fund the operating cycle
The SBA 504 page says a 504 loan cannot be used for working capital or inventory. It also cannot fund speculation or investment in rental real estate. A CDC file will not solve a payroll date. Use 504 for an owner-occupied building or long-lived equipment. Use SBA 7(a) or this short-term facility for the operating cycle.
The 7(a) maximum is $5 million. A short-term facility can be sized up to $15 million when trailing revenue, EBITDA, and collateral support the request. Both ceilings are program limits, not approvals.
Illustration: the tighter of two sizing bands
Example only. Not a quote.
A distributor shows $22 million of trailing-twelve-month revenue and $2.4 million of EBITDA.
- About 10% of revenue is $2.2 million.
- About 1× EBITDA is $2.4 million.
The tighter starting band is $2.2 million. The supplier invoice is $1.6 million, due in 12 days, with sell-through expected in five months. The request sits inside the tighter band. It still needs a borrowing base and a payoff inside 12 months.
Twelve days fits the 3–10 business day window only when the aging, the inventory report, and the use of funds arrive with the application. Interest is not estimated here, because the rate is quoted per file.
What lenders often haircut
A complete file names the haircut up front.
- Receivables past the lender’s cutoff, often 90 days, may advance at zero.
- Related-party invoices may advance at zero.
- Inventory still on the water may count only with shipping documents.
- Equipment counts when serial numbers and a lien search are in the file.
- Real estate in the collateral stack needs its own valuation. It does not turn this request into a DSCR loan.
If the only collateral is a non-owner-occupied rental, use a property loan. Bridge loans from Jaken Finance Group are 8.99%–13.5% interest-only and close in 7–10 business days. Apply for the operating-company facility on the commercial loan request.
A twelve-month repayment calendar
| When | What should already be true |
|---|---|
| Day 0 | Use of funds, aging, and the repayment event are on the form |
| Days 3–10 | The facility can close if the file is complete |
| Months 1–4 | Payments follow sell-through or contract billing |
| Months 4–8 | Financials are clean enough to discuss a 7(a) or CAPLine |
| By month 12 | The short note is paid or replaced |
An extension is a new negotiation. It is not the plan you described at application. Call (833) 264-7776 and put the repayment date in the first sentence.
Illustration: equal principal, interest quoted later
Example only. Not a quote, and not an interest rate.
A company borrows $1,200,000 and agrees to repay principal in 24 equal weekly installments. Each principal payment is $1,200,000 / 24 = $50,000. After week 24 the principal is zero. Interest, fees, and any residual sweep sit on top of that $50,000 and are quoted per file. They are omitted here so the principal math stays exact.
| Week | Principal paid that week | Principal still owed |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 | $1,150,000 |
| 8 | $50,000 | $800,000 |
| 16 | $50,000 | $400,000 |
| 24 | $50,000 | $0 |
Week 8 leaves $800,000 because eight payments of $50,000 retire $400,000. Week 16 retires $800,000 and leaves $400,000. If sell-through is slower than $50,000 a week, this schedule is the wrong shape. Ask for a schedule that follows collections, and show the aging that supports it.
Bi-weekly payments are the same idea with a longer gap. A $1,200,000 principal repaid in 12 bi-weekly installments is $100,000 of principal each time. Twelve times $100,000 is $1,200,000. Interest is still extra.
Use the schedule to test cash, not to guess a rate. Jaken Finance Group arranges the facility. The capital source is not named on this site. Apply at the commercial loan request.
Request terms
Whether the need is inventory, a PO, AR lag, or an acquisition bridge, describe the business, the collateral, and the repayment event on the form.
Request working capital terms → · SBA hub · Unsecured term loans · (833) 264-7776
Jaken Finance Group arranges short-term secured working capital for U.S. operating companies. We originate investment-property loans separately. Pricing, structure, and collateral are quoted per file at application. This page is educational — not an offer to lend.