Getting an offer and getting funded are two separate events. Most business owners don't know this until the gap between them turns into a problem. Here's what actually happens between acceptance and wire — and why deals that looked done sometimes aren't.

What "Approved" Actually Means

In MCA, "approved" is a conditional status. It means the underwriter has reviewed your bank statements, run the background check, and determined that the file is fundable — subject to verification. The offer letter or contract you sign is not an unconditional commitment to fund. It's an agreement to fund if the remaining verification steps confirm what was in the application.

This matters because every step that follows acceptance is another opportunity for the file to stop. Most don't. But when they do, it's usually one of the reasons below.

Bank Verification

Bank verification is the step where the funder confirms that the bank account on the application is real, active, and owned by the business entity that signed the contract. This typically happens through a Plaid-style link or similar read-only banking connector — you log in through the funder's portal, and they pull a live look at the account.

Deals fall through at verification when: the merchant doesn't complete the link within the required window, the account shown in the statements doesn't match the account that comes through the link, the account is inactive or closed, or the live view of the account shows materially different conditions than the statements suggested.

If you've recently changed primary operating accounts, make sure the account you verify is the same one reflected in the statements you submitted. A mismatch here is a common and avoidable kill.

What the Final Review Finds

After verification, many funders run a final review pass — a second look at the file now that the account has been confirmed. This is where live account data gets compared to what the statements showed. If your ADB has dropped significantly since the statements were pulled, or if new negative activity has appeared, that can surface during this review.

Timing matters. If there's a multi-day gap between when your statements were pulled and when you're funding, the live account may tell a different story. A few rough days at the end of a month can change the picture enough to trigger a hold.

Stipulations

Stipulations are conditions the underwriter needs resolved before they'll release the wire. Common stips: proof of business address, an updated voided check, a copy of a business license, clarification on a large deposit that appeared in statements, or documentation explaining a gap in deposit activity.

Most stips are solvable. The problem is timing. If a stip comes in at 3pm and the funder has a 4pm funding cutoff, a one-day response is going to push funding to the next business day — or the file joins a queue. Come back with documents fast. The clock matters more than people realize.

What You Say on the Funding Call

Many MCA funders do a brief funding call — sometimes called a quality control call — before wiring. A representative confirms your identity, that you understand the terms, and that nothing has materially changed since the application. This is not a formality. What you say on this call can stop the wire.

Common deal-killers during funding calls:

  • Mentioning that the business has been slower recently ("it's been a rough month")
  • Indicating you're unsure about the terms or were pressured to sign
  • Disclosing that you have other applications in process with other lenders
  • Contradicting something material from the application

The funding call isn't an interrogation. But it's a final verification that you're the business owner, you understand what you signed, and there are no new red flags. Treat it that way.

Funding Cutoffs and Queues

Wire cutoffs are real and they're earlier than you'd expect. Most ACH and wire systems have same-day cutoffs between 2pm and 4pm Eastern. If verification completes or stips are resolved after that window, funding pushes to the next business day. If you're working with a broker, they may have their own queue management — larger portals process dozens of files daily, and position in the queue matters.

Deals don't usually die because of cutoffs, but they get delayed — and delays create anxiety, which sometimes leads to bad decisions like resubmitting elsewhere and creating a stacking problem.

What to Ask Before You Accept

Before you sign, ask the broker or funder these questions:

  • What does the verification process look like and how long does it typically take?
  • Are there any open stips or conditions on this file?
  • What's the funding cutoff, and where am I in today's queue?
  • Is there anything in my file that could surface in final review?

You won't always get straight answers. But asking forces the broker to surface anything they're aware of before you're waiting on a wire that isn't coming.

Not sure what you'd qualify for — or where a deal might stall in your situation?

Qualifai Yourself

If It Happened to You

If your deal fell through after acceptance, the first thing to do is find out exactly where it stopped and why. A specific reason is fixable. Vague broker explanations ("the funder passed") are not.

Ask for the specific decline reason in writing. If it was bank verification, understand what the mismatch was. If it was a final review issue, understand what changed. If it was a funding call issue, that's a harder conversation — but knowing it happened lets you approach the next application differently.

And take some time before resubmitting. A business that's been declined post-acceptance is visible in industry data. Immediate resubmission to multiple funders compounds the problem. Address the specific issue first, then move forward with a single, well-positioned application.