As many SFNet members know, a strong work-out culture, in which lenders and their financially distressed borrowers use out-of-court workouts (OCWs") as a less costly and more efficient alternative to  formal bankruptcy proceedings, is a well-established feature of the U.S. lending environment. 

Economic Context

The recession of 2008-2009 brought many lessons to the lending community; and the small independent finance companies were no exception. When looking back at that period, many of the lessons that we should all remember occurred in 2005-2007, during the lead up to the recession.

If you’ll recall, the economy was strong and business was booming. For small independent finance companies (that typically run counter-cyclical), new business was harder to come by and highly competitive. As is often the case, this led to aggressive structures and lower pricing, a bad combination.

While lenders and financial institutions are not looking to discover the next vaccine or medical breakthrough, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have been reshaping traditional business processes at a rapid speed. Many decision makers in the C-Suites, while still responsible for ensuring everyday “blocking and tackling” is done, are dealing with how best to integrate AI/ML into their companies, and at what cost. This article takes a deeper dive into how AI and ML are being utilized in the industry along with the factors leaders must consider with AI/ML integration.

Tiger Finance has closed on a $15.5 million in debtor-in-possession financing to facilitate the Chapter 11 restructuring of Pennsauken, N.J.-based Aluminum Shapes LLC, a fully integrated manufacturer and distributor of aluminum products serving multiple industries.

Aluminum Shapes LLC, which operates a 500,000-square-foot facility in Pennsauken, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on August 15th in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Camden, New Jersey.

CIT Group Inc. (NYSE: CIT) today announced that CIT Northbridge Credit, as advised by CIT Asset Management LLC, served as sole lead arranger on a $50 million credit facility for Intermetal Rebar LLC.

Headquartered in Miami, Florida, Intermetal Rebar is a leading importer and distributor of reinforcing bar ("rebar") and other structural products to distributors, fabricators, and contractors in the non-residential construction industry.

North Mill Capital LLC (d/b/a SLR Business Credit) (the “Company” or “SLR-BC”), today announced that it acquired Fast Pay Partners, LLC.    Based in Los Angeles, CA, Fast Pay Partners enables clients to accelerate receivables and access liquidity through its asset based lending and factoring platform which primarily services media firms in the United States.

SFNet will be hosting part two of its Independent Finance Roundtable 2021 August 17 - 19, 2021 in-person at the Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel in Chicago, IL. For 2021, we created a unique, invitation-only experience for senior executives from SFNet member entrepreneurial finance and factoring companies. IFR 2021 is a two-part event. The first part on April 27 was a free, live online roundtable discussion and an overview of our August in-person agenda. Panelists and attendees will come together next week to discuss the state of M&A, legal issues impacting our industry, and other timely topics that may affect your business.

In addition to the roundtable meetings and discussions, IFR will offer optional activities to take full advantage of your time in Chicago.

Rosenthal & Rosenthal, Inc., the leading factoring, asset-based lending and purchase order financing firm in the U.S., today announced the completion of a recent $30 million inventory purchase commitment to support the production financing requirements of a California-based importer and distributor of solar panels.

The company had been reflecting moderate sales growth from its existing customer base. Due to increasing demand for solar energy solutions, the company began to significantly expand its customer base nationwide. Production cycle timing, a challenging shipping schedule and ongoing freight and logistics issues impacting importers from Asia prompted the company to explore additional financing options as an alternative to raising equity with its existing third-party factoring company. The third-party factor introduced the client to Rosenthal to assist the client in structuring a purchase order financing solution.

Siena Lending Group LLC ("Siena"), a leading independent asset-based lending company, today announced it has increased its senior credit facility with Wells Fargo Capital Finance to $400 million. This upsize will enable Siena to continue its growth following the firm’s historic results in the second quarter of 2021, when it closed more than $220 million in credit facilities for middle-market businesses across the country.