For many owner-managers, the capital problem is simple: banks want amortising repayments and security; equity is costly and dilutive; and grant funding is sporadic. Revenue-based finance (RBF) and merchant cash advances (MCAs) sit in the gap—linking repayments to your takings so cash flow breathes when sales dip and accelerates repayments when trading is brisk.

This piece explains what RBF/MCA are, who they suit, how they compare to term loans, and what to watch. It also profiles three active UK providers—Wayflyer, Capchase, and Liberis—with case studies and a comparison table. We close with non-obvious use-cases many B2B firms overlook, and a note on embedded finance options from Shopify Capital and Stripe Capital (via YouLend) for platform merchants.

What is revenue-based finance?

Revenue-based finance is non-dilutive growth capital repaid as a fixed fee from a share of future revenues rather than fixed instalments. The financier advances a lump sum; you agree an all-in fee; and you remit a contracted percentage of future receipts until the total repayment cap is reached. There's no compounding interest and, typically, no early-repayment penalty.

Closely related are merchant cash advances (MCAs)—popular with card-taking businesses—where repayments come off your daily card settlements as a fixed percentage, again until a pre-set amount has been remitted. That means no fixed term: slower months mean smaller remittances; stronger months clear the balance faster.

Core idea: repay as you earn, not on a calendar schedule.

Who is RBF for?

Best fit today

• E-commerce and multichannel retail with predictable card/checkout flows (Shopify, Amazon, D2C). These firms value speed, inventory cycles, and marketing spend elasticity.
• B2B SaaS or subscription businesses with measurable recurring revenue (MRR/ARR), where financing can be underwritten against retention and cohort data.
• Hospitality and services (cafés, salons, pubs, gyms) with steady card takings suited to MCA remittances.

Often overlooked but viable

• B2B companies that still take card payments (field services, professional services with online checkout, training providers). If revenue flows through card rails, MCA-style products can map repayments to your takings—even if you're not "retail" in the classic sense.
• Seasonal operators (garden centres, events, education) that dislike fixed amortisation; variable remittances track seasonality naturally.

Why not a standard loan?

Term loans are cheap if you qualify and can tolerate fixed repayments through cyclical dips. RBF/MCA trade a higher explicit fee for:

• Speed (application to cash in hours/days)
• Flex (repayment flexes with sales; usually no early-repayment fee)
• No equity or PGs in many cases (provider-dependent)

The trade-off: the effective APR can be higher than bank debt if you repay quickly during strong months. You should model scenarios (see "Due-diligence checklist" below).

Three notable lenders in the UK market

The RBF/MCA market evolves quickly; for example, Uncapped publicly announced it stopped offering RBF in favour of fixed-term loans. Always check current product menus before you apply.

1) Wayflyer - e-commerce specialist

Wayflyer provides flexible financing from c.$5k to $20m, typically 1.5–3× monthly revenue, with rapid underwriting for online sellers (Shopify, Amazon, wholesale). Funds commonly support inventory and performance marketing.

Case studies

Powerlete (UK fitness brand): leveraged Wayflyer funding to expand product lines and 10× sales within a year, addressing the "cash-for-inventory" bottleneck.

Petshop.co.uk: used Wayflyer to maintain agility—balancing equity preservation with growth spend.

Why they're strong: Deep e-commerce data integrations, purpose-built analytics, and ticket sizes that scale with growth.

2) Capchase - recurring-revenue & B2B payments

Capchase focuses on SaaS and subscription businesses, turning recurring revenue into non-dilutive working capital. Its platform also supports B2B BNPL/vendor financing to accelerate sales cycles (e.g., funding annual contracts paid monthly).

Customer results

Capchase highlights customers that shortened sales cycles and funded POCs while recouping upfront costs immediately; some report material pipeline and deal-mix shifts after adopting Capchase-backed payment terms.

Why they're strong: Specialisation in recurring-revenue underwriting, embedded workflows for finance and sales, and tooling that mirrors how SaaS actually bills and collects.

3) Liberis - merchant cash advance & embedded partners

Liberis is a long-standing MCA provider advancing £1k–£500k (and higher via partners), repaid as a fixed percentage of daily card sales with a single fixed fee and no fixed term. Liberis also powers embedded programmes with acquirers and platforms (e.g., Elavon).

Case studies

Elavon partnership: 4 in 5 funded customers took additional rounds, pointing to fit and customer stickiness.

Why they're strong: Tight coupling to card-acquirer data, automated daily remittance, and partner distribution that can make offers visible where merchants already operate.

Comparison table: three lenders at a glance

Embedded alternatives on the platforms you already use

Shopify Capital (UK)

Offers merchant cash advances to eligible Shopify merchants in the United Kingdom, delivered via YouLend under a receivables purchase agreement; you get a lump sum for a fixed fee and remit a percentage of daily sales until the termination amount is reached. Availability is invite-only and surfaced in your Shopify admin.

Stripe Capital (UK)

Launched for selected UK businesses running directly on Stripe; financing provided by YouLend. Repayments are an automated percentage of daily sales with a single fixed fee. (Roll-out has been staged; eligibility is determined within Stripe.)

These embedded paths can be friction-light if you already process on the platform—underwriting leverages your payment history, and funding/repayments are automated.

Case studies: what "good" looks like

Powerlete (fitness/e-commerce) used Wayflyer to expand product lines into a demand spike and grew 10× in a year, a classic inventory-cash-conversion play.

Petshop.co.uk (D2C retail) applied RBF to protect equity while maintaining agility in marketing and stock.

SaaS vendors using Capchase report shorter sales cycles and the ability to fund POCs while getting paid upfront, aligning cash in with the cost of customer acquisition.

Liberis × Elavon show repeat usage (4 out of 5 taking further rounds), suggesting MCA works as an ongoing working-capital tool for card-heavy SMEs.

These aren't promises—they're indications of where the products fit when revenue data is strong and the use-of-funds has a measurable payback (inventory turns, marketing ROAS, pipeline conversion).

Merchant Cash Advance vs "Plans" products

In UK parlance, Merchant Cash Advance typically refers to receivables purchases against card takings (e.g., Liberis, Shopify Capital, Stripe Capital w/YouLend). The "Plans" label is often used by providers to describe fixed-fee, revenue-linked repayment plans (sometimes marketed as "pay-as-you-sell" or B2B BNPL for software/services). Capchase's vendor financing is a prime example—letting you offer annual pricing to buyers on monthly terms while you receive most of the cash day one.

Due-diligence checklist (value-add for owners)

• Unit economics first. Model how borrowed pounds convert into gross profit (inventory turns, CAC-to-LTV). If your payback period exceeds the implied tenor, fees compound economically even if there's no "interest rate."
• Effective APR sensitivity. Ask the lender for fee/repayment schedules under slow, base, and fast sales. If you repay in 3–4 months, the implied APR may be far higher than bank debt; if you repay in 9–12 months, the cost normalises.
• Remittance rate stress-test. A 10–15% skim off daily settlements is tolerable for most, but stack two advances or add a downturn and liquidity tightens. (Liberis discloses that merchants must enable at least a minimum monthly amount—check this carefully.)
• Data-sharing. RBF works because lenders read your sales/processing data. Ensure you're comfortable with required integrations and data retention.
• Covenants & guarantees. Many providers avoid personal guarantees; confirm whether any PGs, debentures, or minimums apply. (Product terms vary by lender.)
• Stacking & refinancing. Don't stack multiple advances unless cash-in has near-term payback; rollover cycles can erode margins.

When RBF doesn't look like a fit, but actually can be

• B2B agencies/consultancies that take card payments for retainers or project deposits. If revenue clears through card rails, an MCA can still work—even without a shopfront.
• Wholesale with card-present trade counter (builders' merchants, food wholesalers) can route a portion of remittances via terminal takings.
• SaaS with usage-based billing: if you can evidence predictable MRR/NRR and retention, RBF can underwrite against recurring revenue—even if cash collections vary intramonth.

Putting it together: which route for which SME?

• Choose Wayflyer if you're an e-commerce or marketplace seller needing inventory and marketing firepower, with strong tracking and clear payback windows.
• Choose Capchase if you're SaaS/subscription and want to bring cash forward on annual contracts or offer plans that close deals faster without discounting.
• Choose Liberis if you're card-taking (retail, hospitality, services) and want repayments to rise and fall with till receipts. Consider embedded offers via your acquirer.
• Consider Shopify Capital/Stripe Capital (YouLend) if you already process on those platforms and prefer an in-dashboard experience with automated remittances.

Final thought

RBF and MCAs are tools, not strategies. Used against fast-payback growth levers—inventory that turns, paid media with disciplined ROAS, or vendor financing that lifts conversion—they can be a repeatable working-capital loop. Used as a patch for structural margin issues, they magnify risk.

The market shifts—product menus change (as Uncapped's move shows), risk appetite tightens in downturns, and fees follow delinquency and cost of capital. Owners should benchmark at least two offers, request scenario-based cost disclosures, and insist on clear total-repay figures under slow/average/fast trading before signing.

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