Revenue-based financing

Revenue-based financing or royalty-based financing (RBF) is a type of financial capital provided to small or growing businesses in which investors inject capital into a business in return for a percentage of ongoing gross revenues. Usually the returns to the investor continue until the initial capital amount, plus a multiple (also known as a cap) is repaid.[1][2] Most RBF investors expect the loan to be repaid within 4 to 5 years of the initial investment.

RBF is often described as sitting between a bank loan, typically requiring collateral or significant assets, and angel investment or venture capital, which involve selling an equity portion of the business in exchange for the investment.[3][4] In an RBF investment, investors do not take an upfront ownership stake (equity) in the business, usually taking a small equity warrant instead. RBF investments usually do not require a seat on the company's board of directors, and no valuation exercise is necessary to make the investment. Nor does RBF require the backing of the loan by founder's personal assets.[1]

History

RBF has long been used in the energy industries as a type of debt financing. In the late 1980s, Arthur Fox pioneered this funding model for early-stage businesses in New England. Seeing some initial success, he began a small RBF fund in 1992, which was found to perform on-par with expectations for the alternative assets industry, yielding an IRR of over 50%.[5] In 2011, Mr. Fox began licensing his proprietary RBF financing model to enable new RBF funds to form. His first licensee is Cypress Growth Capital, LLC in Dallas, Texas. Cypress is now the largest RBF fund in the United States with more than $50 million under management.

The Revenue Capital Association is the trade association representing the RBF industry. Some firms have a geographic-focused model in the Mountain States. Other firms take a more nationwide approach,.[6]

Comparison

RBF can provide significant advantages to entrepreneurs and businesses.[6] The nature of RBF, however, requires that businesses have two key attributes. First, the business must be generating revenue, as it will be from that revenue that payments are made.[7] Second, the business should have strong gross margins to accommodate the percentage of revenue dedicated to loan payments.[7]

The interests of an RBF investor align with the interests of the companies in which they invest. Both parties benefit from revenue growth in the business; both parties suffer when revenue declines.[8] T his is in contrast to a typical bank loan, which has a fixed monthly payment over the life of the loan regardless of business revenue. RBF helps manage rough months in the business by having a payment that traces revenue.[1]

Cost of capital is an important consideration for entrepreneurs raising money. Usually the cost of capital in an RBF investment is significantly less than a similar equity investment, for several reasons:[9] First, the actual interest rate on the loan is much lower than the effective interest rate required by an equity investor on their invested capital if the business should be sold.[10] Second, legal fees are lower than with equity financing.[11] Third, because the investment is a loan, the interest payments can often be a tax deduction for the business.[12]

This cost of capital savings is a result of the RBF model and nature of the risk taken by the investor. Because the loan is making payment each month, the RBF investor does not require the eventual sale of the business in order to earn a return. This means that they can afford to take on lower returns in exchange for knowledge that the loan will begin to repay far sooner than if it depended on the eventual sale of the business.

RBF often is more expensive than bank financing,[6] However, few early-stage businesses seeking growth capital will have an asset base to support a commercial loan. Most banks will therefore require a guarantee from the founders of a business that, in the event of default, the bank can pursue their personal assets.[13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Revenue Based Financing Overview".
  2. ↑ "Revenue-Based Financing: What's at Risk".
  3. ↑ Khazan, Olga (8 April 2012). "Between banks and venture capital, some start-ups look to a pay-as-you-go model". The Washington Post.
  4. ↑ "AVC: Revenue Based Financing".
  5. ↑ "Revenue Capital & Disruptive Models: Venture Funding Tools for Developing Nations".
  6. 1 2 3 "Overlooked Financing Option for Your Business".
  7. 1 2 "When NOT to raise Revenue-based Financing".
  8. ↑ "A Sack of Seattle: Angel Investing".
  9. ↑ "Myth: RBF is too expensive".
  10. ↑ Kerins, Frank (February 2003). "opportunity cost of capital for venture capital investors and entrepreneurs" (PDF). Journal of FInancial and Quantitative Analysis.
  11. ↑ "Revenue-based Financing: What's At Risk".
  12. ↑ "Tax treatment of revenue-based payments".
  13. ↑ "5 Typical Bank Requirements for a Business Loan".
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Tuesday, August 04, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.