The specs
Accord Business FundingStrategic Funding Source (Kapitus)
Product typeMCAMulti-product
Amount range$5K – $150K$10K – $5M
Cost (factor / APR)Factor varies by paper gradeFactor 1.16 – 1.45 (MCA); APR 25 – 50% (term); APR 18 – 35% (LOC)
Speed to fundNext-day for approved files24 – 72 hours
Min time in business3 months24 months
Min monthly revenueFlexible — no published floor$5,000
Min credit scoreFlexible — accepts B/C-paper625+
Products
- MCA (1st / 2nd / 3rd position)
- MCA
- Term loan
- LOC
- Equipment financing
- Invoice factoring
- SBA loans
Verdicts by use case
- B/C-paper file with 3 – 12 months TIB — Winner: Accord Business Funding. Accord accepts 3+ month TIB and prices B/C-paper aggressively for ISOs. Strategic/Kapitus requires 24+ months and 625+ FICO — declines most B/C files outright. For thin-file or B/C-paper merchants, Accord is the only realistic option in this pair.
- Established merchant (24+ months, 625+ FICO) — Winner: Strategic Funding Source (Kapitus). Strategic/Kapitus's full product menu (MCA, term, LOC, equipment, factoring, SBA) at 1.16 – 1.45 factor is broader and more cost-competitive than Accord's pure MCA structure for files that clear Strategic's bar. For A-paper established merchants, Strategic's product breadth and pricing wins.
- ISO commission on placed deals — Winner: Accord Business Funding. Accord pays up to 15% commission with 100% on renewals and next-day commission payment — among the highest published in the industry. Strategic/Kapitus pays competitive commission but lower headline tiers; the structural difference is Accord's narrower deal band (B/C MCA only) supports higher per-deal economics where Strategic's broader portfolio doesn't.
- Larger deal sizes ($150K+) — Winner: Strategic Funding Source (Kapitus). Strategic/Kapitus underwrites up to $5M across products. Accord caps MCA at $150K. For deals above $150K, Strategic is the only option in this pair.
- Multi-position MCA stacking — Winner: Accord Business Funding. Accord underwrites 1st, 2nd, and 3rd position MCA as deliberate products. Strategic/Kapitus prefers first-position and declines most stacked files. For ISOs placing stacked B/C-paper, Accord is in the cascade where Strategic isn't.
The honest takeaway
Accord Business Funding and Strategic Funding Source (Kapitus) solve overlapping but distinct problems. The right choice depends on three things you already know about your business: how fast you need the money, how long you've been operating, and whether the capital need is one-time or recurring.
Frequently asked questions
- I'm an ISO with mostly B-paper clients — should I add Strategic/Kapitus or stay with Accord?
- Mostly stay with Accord for the existing book. Strategic/Kapitus's underwriting bar (24+ months, 625+ FICO) declines most of an existing B-paper portfolio. Add Strategic to your funder mix when you start seeing more A-paper files (established multi-year merchants with clean credit) — for those, Strategic's broader product menu lets you place deals Accord can't (equipment, LOC, SBA). The two are complementary, not substitutes.
- Why does Accord pay higher commission than Strategic/Kapitus on similar-sized deals?
- Risk premium captured in product pricing. Accord underwrites B/C-paper MCA at 1.30 – 1.45 factor — wider spread between cost-of-capital and merchant pricing supports higher ISO commission. Strategic/Kapitus underwrites tighter (A-paper files at 1.16 – 1.30) — narrower spread limits commission tier ceiling. The ISO economics aren't pure broker math; they reflect the underwriting risk and pricing power on the specific paper grade. Accord's B/C focus is genuinely more commissionable than Strategic's A-paper portfolio.
- Can I refinance an Accord MCA into Strategic/Kapitus term loan?
- Possibly, once the file qualifies for Strategic. Path: pay Accord MCA down to ~50% of original advance, cross the 24-month TIB threshold, raise FICO to 625+, then apply to Strategic for a term loan to pay off Accord. Net savings on a $75K refinance can run $5K – $12K depending on remaining Accord balance and Strategic's term rate. The refinance path is the standard exit from B/C-paper MCA into term-loan structure as files mature.