We simplify growth finance for SaaS.

No warrants or unnecessary covenants/terms
Revenue based & Fixed Rate Business Finance

Straightforward Options

Financing with a fixed interest rate and payment schedule.

Fixed monthly payments
Multiple tranches reduce your cost of capital
Interest only period helps cash flow at the beginning
Flexible early prepayments
No equity warrants or personal guarantees
COST

as low as 15%

Fixed annual interest rate range

1%

Origination Fee

Up to 5 years

Interest-only period available.

Up to $10M

Flexible structures based on needs.
Interested? Learn More

Growth capital repaid with a percentage of your monthly revenue.

Pay less until your revenue increases
Loan payments match your revenue recognition
No prepayment penalties
No equity warrants or personal guarantees
COST
Payback multiples over a 5 year period

1%

Origination Fee

Repayment

made as a percentage of revenue.
Interested? Learn More

A flexible approach to venture debt

Let’s face it, not all debt is created equal. We believe there’s a different way to grow and finance should be straightforward and tailored to the needs of the business.

Flexible Financing.
A long-term capital partner over the life of your business.
Absolutely No Warrants Ever.
No board seats, no equity, no loss of control of your business
Relationship Banking for SaaS.
We take a personal, partnership led approach to learn your business and help you build the right capital stack.
Transparent Terms.
Flexible, customized approach to finance structure. We'll customize what you need with no hidden terms and conditions.
Coverage across North America and Europe icon.
Coverage across North America and Europe.

About Us

We help founders bridge the SaaS funding gap through revenue-based finance and fixed-term loans. 

Our straightforward options are customized to the needs of the business providing the right finance option at the right time.

the ELEMENT FINANCE DIFFERENCE

Revenue Based Finance

Our Revenue Based Finance provides capital repaid with a percentage of monthly revenue with no equity warrants or personal guarantees. As a result, founders can pay back multiples over five years, paying less until revenue increases and loan payments match revenue recognition.

Fixed Rate Business Loans

Our fixed-rate business loan provides financing with fixed monthly payments with an interest-only period helping to support cash flow with multiple tranches available to reduce the cost of capital. 

Relationship Driven

We believe in relationships and the people behind the products. We take a personal, partnership-led approach to learning your business and support your growth objectives. 

Venture-Debt Solutions

Our clients leverage our venture-debt solutions for bolt-on acquisitions, bridge loans, refinance of existing debt, market expansion, and investment in sales, marketing, and product resources.

Up to $10M

We can lend up to $10M to recurring-revenue-based companies with a good plan, a track record for growth, low customer concentration and churn, and a clean balance sheet.

What our customers think

“Element finance has been a true partner in our growth. They recognized the potential of our solutions and helped us secure funding that is strategically tied to our business model and allowed us to scale.”
Omri Friedel
Head of Finance, ListReports
“My experience with Element Saas Finance has been outstanding, Element guided us to the right funding model. We drew down funding as needed, enabling growth and minimizing dilution.”
Paul Lynch
Former CEO, Chargify

The SaaS Capital Stack

We are committed to helping SaaS founders build their capital stack while limiting their cost of capital equity.

Cost of Capital

Venture Capital

Venture capital is a common element of the capital stack for early-stage businesses that need large amounts of money to get going and plans on building a complex product or is targeting a broad customer base. However, equity financing involves selling a portion of a company's equity in return for capital, resulting in dilution and loss of control of different elements and directions.

Strategic Investors & Private Equity

Strategic investors will provide different types of equity and debt solutions to businesses that correlate to their own business and see an overlap in services, customers, or products. Strategic investors sometimes ask for a first right of refusal if the company owners try and sell the business. 

Private equity investors buy partial or complete ownership stakes in mature businesses, but where there is an opportunity to expand the business, make it more efficient or a strategy that the current owners do not want to or cannot take.  These investors put in their own management teams and board directors and often provide advisory support and consultancy. 

Seed Funds & Accelerators

Seed capital is provided by private investors – usually in exchange for an equity stake in the company. The type of investor will include founder personal investment, friends and family, angels, or investment funds set up specifically for an early-stage venture.

Investors and business communities set up accelerators to help early-stage businesses access both services, a network of advisors, and early-stage investors. Some accelerators have specific funds that will invest in high potential participants.

Venture debt is a loan product offered mostly by non-bank lenders. These types of loans are for growing companies where there is more risk than a traditional bank loan would work. They can involve a higher interest rate, different fees, and maybe equity warrants to allow the lender to benefit from the upside in highly successful companies.

In recent years more options around Growth Finance have become available. Revenue-based finance provides an option for SaaS founders where the loan is repaid with a percentage of monthly revenue, with a set cost. SaaS companies can leverage recurring revenue venture debt to grow their business without warrants, prepayment penalties, persona guarantees, or equity dilution. 

Grants & Traditional Bank Debt

A business grant is money awarded to businesses undertaking innovation or have the prospect of growth, resulting in employment creation. Government agencies usually issue them, and unlike loans, grants don't have to be paid off. 

Commercial banks give loans to businesses that have advanced to a mature stage in revenue, customers, product, and cash flow. Banks can support these more stable businesses due to the low risk involved in the loans and the high confidence that the loan will be paid back.

Cost of Capital
High
Low

Grants & Traditional Bank Debt

Seed Funds & Accelerators

Strategic Investors & Private Equity

Venture Capital

Explore the Capital Stack

Grants

A business grant is money awarded to businesses undertaking innovation or have the prospect of growth, resulting in employment creation. Government agencies usually issue them, and unlike loans, grants don't have to be paid off.

Traditional Bank Debt

Commercial banks give loans to businesses that have advanced to a mature stage in revenue, customers, product, and cash flow. Banks can support these more stable businesses due to the low risk involved in the loans and the high confidence that the loan will be paid back. 

Seed Funds

Seed capital is provided by private investors – usually in exchange for an equity stake in the company. The type of investor will include founder personal investment, friends and family, angels, or investment funds set up specifically for an early-stage venture.

Accelerators

Investors and business communities set up accelerators to help early-stage businesses access both services, a network of advisors, and early-stage investors. Some accelerators have specific funds that will invest in high potential participants

Venture Debt

Venture debt is a loan product offered mostly by non-bank lenders. These types of loans are for growing companies where there is more risk than a traditional bank loan would work. They can involve a higher interest rate, different fees, and maybe equity warrants to allow the lender to benefit from the upside in highly successful companies.

Growth Finance

In recent years more options around Growth Finance have become available. Revenue-based finance provides an option for SaaS founders where the loan is repaid with a percentage of monthly revenue, with a set cost. SaaS companies can leverage recurring revenue venture debt to grow their business without warrants, prepayment penalties, personal guarantees, or equity dilution. 

Strategic Investors

Strategic investors will provide different types of equity and debt solutions to businesses that correlate to their own business and see an overlap in services, customers, or products. Strategic investors sometimes ask for a first right of refusal if the company owners try and sell the business. 

Private Equity

Private equity investors buy partial or complete ownership stakes in mature businesses, but where there is an opportunity to expand the business, make it more efficient or a strategy that the current owners do not want to or cannot take.  These investors put in their own management teams and board directors and often provide advisory support and consultancy. 

Venture Capital

Venture capital is a common element of the capital stack for early-stage businesses that need large amounts of money to get going and plans on building a complex product or is targeting a broad customer base. However, equity financing involves selling a portion of a company's equity in return for capital, resulting in dilution and loss of control of different elements and directions.

Featured Companies

We help SaaS companies grow dilution free with a boutique, hands-on approach.
karbon logo

Frequently Asked Questions

How fast can you fund?

Our fastest funding was only four days, but our average time to funding is six weeks. So, we will work with your schedule as best we can.

What size of loans do you offer?

We lend funds from $200k to $10m.

Do you require warrants?

No, we help drive growth, not dilution. We believe warrants are not in the best interest of founders and have never done a loan with a warrant.

Do you share data of companies you’ve lent to?

We value our founder’s privacy and do not share data about our clients without consent.

Will you lend to companies that aren’t profitable?

We lend based on recurring revenue, not profit. Although burning cash to grow is part of high growth strategies, we like to see this done in a managed way that fits the business's objectives and growth plan.

We are okay with pre-profitability if a company has more than $1m in recurring revenue, a manageable cash burn profile, low churn, and plan for an appropriately sized debt funding that will grow the business over the coming year.

Do you have prepayment penalties? Can I prepay my loan?

We have no prepayment penalties. However, we do require a notice period after a pre-agreed minimum term length.

How are other SaaS companies leveraging debt finance with Element SaaS Finance?

Our customers use our growth finance in a variety of ways. The most common use is helping with working capital to invest in upfront growth costs such as sales and markets, team expansions, etc. We support the customer in several other ways, including bolt-on acquisitions, bridge loans for specific needs, refinancing existing debt, market expansion, and shareholder buyouts.

How can I determine if I will qualify for funding? What does a good borrower profile look like to get funded?

We can lend up to $10M to recurring-revenue-based companies with $1m or more in ARR that have a good plan, a track record for growth, low customer concentration and churn, and a clean balance sheet.

What does our plan or cash flow profile need to look like?

We lend up to 6x MRR and would want our loan to give your company at least 9-12 months of cash flow runway to enable you to grow. If your cash burn profile is much higher and the loan will only give you runway for 2-3 months, then our loans may require you to raise other funds (e.g., equity) to be invested alongside the loan.

What is an Element SaaS Finance fixed rate term loan?

Our fixed rate term loans offer interest-only periods, so you can use more of your cash flow to invest in your growth at the beginning of the loan.

Can I continue to get funds in the future?

Yes. You don’t need to borrow it all up front. You can pull down funds as you need.

What is the difference between an Element SaaS Finance fixed-rate term Loan vs. Element SaaS Finance Revenue-Based Loan?

A fixed rate term-loan is much more straightforward. Revenue-based finance, from a cash point of view and doesn’t appreciate the time, value of money.

Does my business have to be profitable?

No, we don’t require you to be profitable. As long as you have a good team with a strong strategic path to profitability, we’d like the opportunity to work with you.

There's a different way to grow.

We are committed to helping SaaS founders build their capital stack while limiting their cost of capital equity.
We help businesses in every sector lower their cost to capital and grow dilution-free
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