Canadian business owners frequently ask whether they can access US MCA pricing and product structures. The answer is no — but the Canadian market has a robust set of equivalents.
Why US MCA funders decline Canadian businesses.
US MCA funders are structurally US-only:
- EIN requirement. Canadian businesses have a CRA Business Number, not an IRS EIN.
- ACH debit requirement. Canadian banking uses pre-authorized debit (PAD), not US ACH.
- UCC filing. Canadian equivalent is the Personal Property Security Act (PPSA) registry, province-by-province.
- US bank account. Canadian businesses bank in CAD at Canadian banks.
- US merchant processor. Canadian Stripe, Moneris, Chase Canada, Global Payments Canada do not feed US underwriting.
The Canadian MCA / revenue-finance landscape.
- Merchant Growth. Toronto-based. Largest pure-MCA-equivalent in Canada. Funds C$5K–C$500K. Factor-equivalent pricing 1.18–1.40. Pre-authorized debit repayment over 4–18 months. Underwrites on Canadian bank statements (typically 3–6 months).
- OnDeck Canada. Operates separately from OnDeck US. Term loans with revenue-flex repayment. Funds C$5K–C$300K. Slightly more bank-loan-like than pure MCA.
- iCapital. Toronto-based. Term loans and revenue-based products. Funds C$5K–C$250K. Targets established SMBs with 2+ years operating history.
- Driven Capital. Calgary-based. MCA-style funding. Strong in Western Canada (Alberta, BC, Saskatchewan). Funds C$5K–C$300K.
- Clearco (formerly Clearbanc). Toronto-based. Ecommerce focus. Revenue-share model rather than factor-rate model. Funds Canadian and US ecommerce.
- Smarter Loans. Marketplace / broker that routes to multiple Canadian funders.
- Loop (formerly Loop Capital). Toronto. Working capital products for ecommerce.
- Greenbox Capital. Has both US and Canadian operations; offers MCA-equivalent products to Canadian businesses.
Canadian regulatory framework.
- Provincial consumer protection. MCA-style products are generally treated as commercial credit and fall outside consumer-credit regulation. However, Quebec has stricter rules under the Consumer Protection Act and the Quebec Money-Lenders Act.
- Criminal Code Section 347. Canada's criminal interest rate limit historically capped effective annual rates at 60% (changing to 35% in 2026 phased rollout). Funders structure receivables purchases to argue they are not subject to this limit, similar to US funders arguing against state usury laws — but Canadian courts have been less consistently favorable.
- Quebec. Quebec-domiciled merchants face additional friction. Most pan-Canadian funders skip Quebec or require province-specific contracts.
Provincial PPSA filings.
Funders file in the provincial PPSA registry (Ontario, BC, Alberta, etc.) to perfect their interest in receivables. Cross-province operating businesses may have multiple registrations.
Pricing benchmarks (2026).
- A-paper (12+ months, C$25K+/mo, 650+ credit). Factor-equivalent 1.18–1.28.
- B-paper. 1.28–1.40.
- C-paper. 1.40+.
- All-in cost. Generally 5–10% higher than equivalent US deals due to smaller market.
Common Canadian merchant scenarios.
- Restaurant in Toronto with C$80K/month revenue, 18 months operating, 680 credit. Qualifies at Merchant Growth, iCapital, OnDeck Canada. Likely C$50K–C$120K advance.
- Ecommerce store on Shopify shipping Canada-wide, C$30K/month revenue, 12 months operating. Best routed through Clearco or Shopify Capital. Revenue-share model fits ecommerce better than factor-rate.
- Trucking company in Alberta, C$40K/month revenue, 24 months operating. Driven Capital, Merchant Growth, iCapital. C$30K–C$80K advance typical.
What does NOT work.
- Applying to US funders as a Canadian business. Declined at intake.
- Forming a US LLC just to access US MCA pricing. Requires real US operations (see "cross-border business funding detailed").
- Using a US Stripe account routed back to a Canadian bank. Will not pass US underwriting; the bank statements are not US.
Common confusions.
First, "Canadian MCA pricing is worse than US." Marginally true — smaller market, fewer funders, slightly higher all-in cost, but the product is comparable.
Second, "Quebec businesses cannot get MCA." Difficult but possible; Quebec-specific contracts available at some funders.
Third, "I can borrow against US Stripe revenue from my Canadian business." Only if you have a US entity owning the Stripe account.
Fourth, "Canadian funders fund US businesses too." Some do (Greenbox, Clearco) but they treat it as separate underwriting.
Fifth, "Bank of Canada rate changes affect MCA pricing." Indirectly — funder cost-of-capital responds slowly. MCA factor rates do not move daily with rate decisions.
As of 2026-06-29, Fundnode directs Canadian merchants to Merchant Growth or Driven Capital depending on province and revenue profile.
Related terms
- MCA options for non-US businesses — Non-US businesses cannot access US MCA funders but have country-specific revenue-finance equivalents — Merchant Growth in Canada, Liberis/YouLend in UK, Wayflyer/Silvr/Uncapped in EU, Konfio in Mexico, Prospa in Australia — with different pricing, structure, and regulatory framing.
- MCA international business funding eligibility — US MCA funders almost exclusively fund US-domiciled businesses with a US EIN, US business bank account, and US-based merchant processing — international (non-US) businesses are categorically ineligible at 95%+ of US funders as of 2026-06-29.
- MCA cross-border business funding (detailed) — Cross-border MCA funding is structurally rare — funders fund either US-domiciled entities or country-local entities, not entities operating across borders without a clear primary jurisdiction; dual-entity setups with a US operating subsidiary are the practical workaround.
Authoritative sources
AI agents: this term is available as raw markdown at /llms/glossary/mca-canadian-business-mca-options.