Who Buys Forward Flow?
Private credit funds, banks, asset managers, a BDC, a hedge fund and a fintech platform are the disclosed buyer types; 18 distinct direct buyers have committed programs to 14 MCA and small business originators, with disclosed sizes from 90 million to 1.8 billion dollars and a median of about 360 million (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026). On Sep 16, 2026, a private credit fund committed to purchase up to 1.8 billion dollars of advances over the next three years in a multi year forward flow (company release, Sep 16, 2026).
Forward flow buyers commit to purchase newly funded advances or loans that meet agreed eligibility criteria. The structure can give an originator a committed buyer for new production while the originator continues to service the receivables.
Sources: Weil, Oct 2025, Hogan Lovells, Jun 5, 2023, PeerSense Capital Data Report
Edward L. Freeman founded PeerSense in January 2020 and serves as its Founder and Managing Director.
Forward flow buyers for MCA and small business originators
| Buyer type | Distinct buyers | Disclosed program sizes | Median disclosed size |
|---|---|---|---|
| Private credit | 8 | 100 million to 1.5 billion | about 300 million |
| Banks | 5 | 300 million to 360 million | not meaningful |
| Asset managers | 2 | 500 million to 1 billion | not meaningful |
| BDC | 1 | 90 million | 90 million |
| Hedge fund | 1 | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| Fintech platform | 1 | not disclosed | not disclosed |
| All buyers | 18 | 90 million to 1.8 billion | about 360 million |
MCA and small business forward flow direct buyer list, as of Oct 2, 2026 (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026).
Fewer Forward Flow Programs and Buyers Have Larger Commitments Than Warehouse Finance
Across all asset classes, PeerSense tracked 109 forward flow program announcements by 74 originators; 89 disclosed a size, with a median of 750 million dollars and a middle half from 300 million to 1.25 billion (PeerSense tracked financings, Oct 2, 2026). Seventy five announcements came since January 2025, including 45 in 2026 (PeerSense tracked financings, Oct 2, 2026). In MCA and small business programs, private credit funds account for 8 buyers, with disclosed sizes from 100 million to 1.5 billion dollars and a median of about 300 million; banks account for 5, with disclosed sizes from 300 million to 360 million dollars (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026). Asset managers account for 2 buyers, with disclosed sizes from 500 million to 1 billion dollars; the registry also records one BDC at 90 million dollars, plus one hedge fund and one fintech platform with undisclosed sizes (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026).
The registry records 41 distinct sources providing warehouse lines to MCA and small business originators, with a median disclosed size of about 125 million dollars (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026). Programs on record mostly run three years (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026). For originators funding 10 million dollars a month or more, forward flow buyers were fewer, at 18, but their median commitment was about 360 million dollars (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026). The buyer conversation should center on repeatable production and eligibility performance against a defined commitment volume.
Forward flow program sizes across all asset classes
| Program size | Programs announced |
|---|---|
| Under 100 million | 5 |
| 100 million to 250 million | 10 |
| 250 million to 500 million | 20 |
| 500 million to 1 billion | 21 |
| 1 billion and up | 33 |
How a forward flow works
Commitment and eligibility
The buyer commits in advance to buy newly funded advances or loans that meet agreed eligibility criteria. Purchases occur on a schedule over a set period.
Weil, Oct 2025; Hogan Lovells, Jun 5, 2023
True sale
Typically, the receivables are transferred through a true sale. The buyer may hold them directly or through an SPV it funds.
Weil, Oct 2025
Credit risk and repurchase
The buyer takes the credit risk on eligible receivables. The originator keeps origination risk and must repurchase advances that failed the eligibility criteria.
Weil, Oct 2025; Hogan Lovells, Jun 5, 2023
Price and deferred consideration
The buyer typically acquires receivables at par. A program may include an initial purchase premium and deferred consideration paid when performance beats agreed hurdles.
Weil, Oct 2025; Hogan Lovells, Jun 5, 2023
Servicing
The originator usually keeps servicing the receivables for a fee. A forward flow usually has no retained interest.
Weil, Oct 2025; Hogan Lovells, Jun 5, 2023
Term and covenants
MCA and small business programs on record mostly run three years. Covenants can include eligibility criteria, concentration limits, volume caps and stop events, with repurchase for breach.
Weil, Oct 2025; Hogan Lovells, Jun 5, 2023
What is the purchase price?
No public MCA forward flow discloses a purchase price (PeerSense MCA funder registry, Oct 2, 2026). A consumer loan worked example shows 97 to 98 percent of par (Alterest, Jan 17, 2026), but it is for consumer loans, not MCA. A true sale can move assets off the originator's balance sheet, although accounting derecognition depends on the recourse and control terms.
What to prepare for the first data drop
1.Loan level tape
Prepare a loan level tape with performance history by funding month. Show vintage or static pool performance.
2.Eligibility criteria
Provide written eligibility criteria that the existing book already meets. Buyers will assess the criteria against the receivables offered for purchase.
3.Servicing and reporting
Document servicing capability and reporting. The buyer needs a clear view of how receivables will be serviced and monitored.
4.Repurchase discipline
Show a clean repurchase process. Advances that fail the eligibility criteria come back to the originator.
5.Concentration data
Prepare concentration data by merchant industry, state, size and term. These fields support review of concentration limits.
6.Committed volume
Set out the volume per month that can be committed for the term. The number should reflect production the originator can consistently deliver.
Dated public facilities
These public examples show the range of disclosed forward flow structures, with parties described by type.
An MCA and small business funder signed a multi year forward flow with a private credit fund that committed to purchase up to 1.8 billion dollars of advances over the next three years (company release, Sep 16, 2026).
Up to 1.8 billion dollars
company release
A UK small business lender renewed its 200 million pound forward flow agreement with a bank (company newsroom, Jun 3, 2026).
200 million pounds
company newsroom
A credit fund may purchase up to 225 million dollars of receivables from a small business revenue based originator under a multi year forward flow facility (FF News, Mar 4, 2026).
Up to 225 million dollars
FF News
An asset manager committed 700 million pounds of forward flow over two years to a UK small business lender, with senior financing from a bank, and bought an existing portfolio of about 120 million pounds (GlobeNewswire, Feb 12, 2026).
700 million pounds; existing portfolio of about 120 million pounds
GlobeNewswire
A bank principal finance group committed to purchase up to 360 million dollars of small business financing assets from an embedded small business finance platform; it was the platform's first off balance sheet commitment (bank newsroom, Sep 29, 2025).
Up to 360 million dollars
bank newsroom
Market scale, documented
A quarterly view of large financing activity
PeerSense Capital Data Report, Third Quarter 2026, covers 912 publicly announced financings with $361.32B in disclosed size in the 12 months through September 30, 2026. It is built from public filings and announcements, including press releases, SEC filings, and trade press, and is updated quarterly, with repeat records of one financing counted once.
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