World Business Lenders

What World Business Lenders does

World Business Lenders (WBL) is a U.S.-based direct lender founded in 2011 by Doug Naidus, headquartered in Eatontown, NJ, and operating as World Business Lenders, LLC with a California-licensed subsidiary (WBL California, LLC). The company originates real-estate-secured business loans ranging from $200,000 to $2,000,000 with typical terms of 12–18 months, targeting under-served small-to-medium-sized businesses that lack access to traditional bank financing. Disclosed use cases include working capital for expansion, debt consolidation (often paying off multiple Merchant Cash Advances and business tax liens), and bridge financing secured by first, second, or third-position real-estate collateral across industries such as automotive, wholesale, trucking, telecommunications, mining, and real estate.

WBL distributes its loans through two primary channels: a direct online borrower application portal (multi-step intake capturing company and owner information) and a Broker Referral Program that pays competitive commissions to referral partners who originate and structure commercial loan opportunities. The company supplements origination with community-based distribution via Chamber Funds partnerships with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey and the African-American Chamber of Commerce, including a $10 million fund for Black-owned businesses. Plaid is integrated into the application workflow to verify borrower financial data.

Revenue is generated through interest and fees on originated loans (transaction-based / take-rate model), with rates and fees not publicly disclosed. The leadership team includes alumni of Deutsche Bank, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, UBS, MITRE, and the U.S. Army, with dedicated executives for lending operations, asset resolution, internal audit, compliance, data & analytics, and information technology. WBL maintains multi-state privacy compliance (CCPA, Nevada, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Utah) and a California Financing Law license. Since 2011 the company has raised more than $305 million in disclosed capital across rounds from Business Development Corporation of America, Harvest Capital Credit Corporation, Pi Capital International, and a $250 million investment announced in February 2026.

Name

World Business Lenders

Legal name

World Business Lenders, LLC

Website

https://wbl.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

World Business Lenders is a U.S. direct lender originating $200,000–$2,000,000 real-estate-secured business loans to under-served small-to-medium-sized businesses, distributed through an online portal and a broker referral program, including Chamber Funds partnerships targeting minority entrepreneurs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Small Business Commercial Lending

NAICS

Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (522)

SIC

Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)

akta.pro primary industry

Middle-Market Lending (FSANADAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Multi-Loan / Multi-Creditor Consolidation Loans (FSAKAIAD)

Keywords

• Small business lending
• Real estate secured loans
• Commercial lending
• Working capital loans
• Direct lending

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Business Loan Interest and Fees: WBL generates revenue through interest and fees on business loans it originates directly. Loan amounts range from $200,000 to $2,000,000 with terms typically 12-18 months. The company offers working capital loans secured by real estate collateral to eligible businesses for expansion and growth.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

World Business Lenders is a direct lender that provides real-estate secured business loans ranging from $200,000 to $2,000,000 to under-served small-to-medium sized businesses that lack access to traditional funding. Loans typically have 12-18 month terms and are used for working capital, expansion, debt consolidation, and payoff of business tax liens. The company originates loans directly through an online application portal and indirectly through a Broker Referral Program of partner brokers.

Product overview

World Business Lenders operates as a direct lender offering a unified real-estate secured business loan product with amounts ranging from $200,000 to $2,000,000. The core Real-Estate Secured Business Loans product is complemented by a Broker Referral Program that enables wholesale loan originations through a partner network. The company also provides an Online Borrower Application portal that guides applicants through a multi-step process to submit loan requests. The product suite is designed to serve under-served small-to-medium sized businesses lacking access to traditional funding, with a flexible, common-sense underwriting approach.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Real-Estate Secured Business Loans

Quantifiable outcome

• Loan amounts range from $200,000 to $2,000,000
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey (SHCCNJ)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 October 2019Partnership to provide greater access to capital for Hispanic small business owners and entrepreneurs. WBL & SHCCNJ announced innovative plan for alternative small business loans. Joint appearance on WABC Channel 7's 'Tiempo' program. Senator Menendez praised the partnership.
• African-American Chamber of Commerce (AACF)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 26 October 2019Partnership to help entrepreneurs of color. New $10 million fund created for black businesses. AACF team discusses launch of new program in YouTube video.
• Chamber FundscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerWBL launched Chamber Funds for under-served communities in partnership with Hispanic & African-American Chambers of Commerce. Funds provide access to capital for under-served communities.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• National Funding: Direct alternative lender offering working capital loans, merchant cash advances, and equipment financing to SMBs; comparable broker referral distribution and target SMB customer base to WBL.
• Fundbox: Digital SMB credit platform providing working capital and lines of credit to small businesses, overlapping with WBL in target segment, online application experience, and broker/partner channels.
• Currency: Direct small business lender (formerly Currency Capital) specializing in real-estate secured business loans and SBA loans; particularly close match to WBL's real-estate secured commercial loan product.
• BlueVine: Online lender offering working capital lines of credit and term loans to small businesses, with comparable SMB focus, online application workflow, and Plaid-style data integration.
• Credibly: Alternative SMB lender providing working capital, term loans, and MCA consolidation products to under-served small businesses — directly comparable product mix to WBL, especially on consolidation use cases.
• Forward Financing: Direct alternative lender providing revenue-based financing and working capital to under-served small businesses in the US, directly competing for the same broker-driven SMB origination pipeline.
• OnDeck Capital: Online direct lender providing working capital and term loans to small businesses, very similar in target customer (under-served SMBs) and product (short-term business loans). OnDeck is a direct competitor in the SMB online lending space.
• Kapitus: Alternative SMB financing provider offering working capital, MCA consolidation, and term loans to under-served small businesses, overlapping with WBL on consolidation and broker-driven SMB origination.

Emerging players

• Accion: Mission-driven small business and microfinance lender focused on under-served and minority-owned businesses — directly aligned with WBL's community lending mission via Chamber of Commerce partnerships.
• Biz2Credit: Small business lending marketplace connecting SMBs to multiple lenders via a broker-style model; comparable in SMB target segment and channel-driven origination, though operates as a marketplace rather than direct balance-sheet lender.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/WBLendersLLC
• Facebookfacebook.com/worldbusinesslenders
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/world-business-lenders-llc

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about World Business Lenders