What lenders look at in your card statements

Total monthly volume

The first number underwriters look at, and the one that drives advance size. Most lenders cap the advance at 1× to 1.5× your average monthly card takings. £18,000/month of card sales typically supports an advance up to about £25,000.

Consistency month-to-month

Two businesses doing the same £180,000 annual card volume can get very different offers. One that averages £15,000 every month is easier to underwrite than one swinging between £8,000 and £30,000. Volatility doesn't kill the deal, but it pushes the daily repayment % down and the fixed cost up.

Seasonality

Lenders want to see at least one peak. If your statements only cover Jan to May, an underwriter can't tell whether your "average" is really an average or a peak. Twelve months of data unlocks better pricing and larger advances. See MCA for seasonal businesses.

Refunds and chargebacks

A refund ratio above 5% draws a question. Above 8%, it draws a decline at most lenders. Chargebacks are scrutinised harder still, anything over 1% will be flagged. If you've got a known operational issue (dispute with one supplier, a one-off fraud incident), explain it upfront in the application rather than letting the underwriter guess.

Processor stability

Switching processors mid-history makes life harder. If you moved from Worldpay to Dojo six months ago, submit both sets of statements together and explain the move. Lenders aren't suspicious of switching they're suspicious of gaps they can't reconcile.

Red flags that kill applications

• Unexplained drops of more than 30% month-on-month with no seasonal pattern.
• Negative recent trend, three consecutive months of decline, however shallow.
• High refund/chargeback ratios, especially if rising.
• Suspended processor periods, even short suspensions look like cash-flow risk.
• Round-number takings that look like manual entry rather than processor exports.

The fix for most of these is documentation, not panic. If your statements have a story, tell it. Underwriters reward operators who get ahead of the obvious questions. Apply now.