E-2 Financing

January 16, 2024

by an intermediary from Duke University - The Fuqua School of Business in New York, NY, USA

Hi All,

Does anyone have experience with financing options for E-2 visa holders(self funded search). My understanding is SBA loans are out of the question and traditional banks will only lend if you've been operating the business for 6M-2Y. I know seller notes would be the ideal scenario but realistically there will likely be a gap that needs to be bridged.

Curious about your thoughts and experiences with this.

Reply by a lender
from Eastern Illinois University in 900 E Diehl Rd, Naperville, IL 60563, USA

There are very few if any financing options available for a non-US citizen buyer for businesses. However, with SBA 7A lending, you can buy a business and be a participant as a non-US citizen so long as you own 49% or less of the company and 51% or more of the company is owned and controlled by US Citizens or greencard holders. This is probably the best way to get business acquisition financing done. Outside of this you are going to need significant equity into a deal and find a lender that can be comfortable on the deal alone, which means you likely would need a transaction fully secured by hard collateral.

Join the discussion