Even Just Applying for an Online Loan Can Be Risky
Small business lending expert Ami Kassar decided he wanted to see first-hand what the process was like. It did not go well.
Good Morning!
Here are today’s highlights:
The immigration crackdown has sent Latino consumers into hiding.
The raids are happening well beyond L.A., and they are happening to companies that believe they’ve done everything by the book.
ADP says small businesses, despite paying less, are managing to retain more employees.
Some AI companies are dropping the pretense that their technology won’t eliminate jobs.
FINANCE
In his latest column, Ami Kassar says you might want to think twice before applying with an alternative lender: “A few months ago, I was sitting up late one night and thinking about what to write a column about. I decided to try applying for an online business loan just to see what the experience would be like. I still regret this decision. I started with some of the larger, well-known companies and was rejected three times in a row. The reason given for the declinations is somewhat amusing: they all thought I was in their industry, which is a restricted one. They were unable to distinguish between a merchant cash advance broker, which MultiFunding definitely is not, and an SBA loan advisory or brokerage, which it is. Perhaps these companies have insight into their own industry that makes them hesitant to lend to it.”
“When I start down a path, I usually don’t give up. And that’s how I managed to make the mistake of going one step further. I applied to a company that I had never heard of before but that had a slick interface and strong Google reviews. I also submitted three months of my bank statements through a secure portal. And that is when the chaos began.”
“The only thing I can make sense of is that this lender sold my lead and forwarded my bank statements to what seems to be a couple of hundred lenders. Ever since, I have received non-stop texts and phone calls with financing offers. To make matters worse, my kid and wife are on the same phone plan that I am, and they are constantly being harassed as well. We can’t unsubscribe and report spam fast enough. The inquiries keep coming.”
“To add insult to injury, one of the ‘lenders’ that got my bank statements quickly withdrew money from my bank account, forcing us to adopt the Positive Pay system and change all of our procedures. Fortunately, we caught this in time, so we didn’t lose any money. But we certainly lost time.” READ MORE
MARKETING
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