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Submission
Also called deal submission, file submission, shopping the file.
A broker packaging a merchant's application and documents and sending them to funders for a decision — and, when sent to many at once, the point where control over the merchant's data is lost.
Drafted with AI assistance. Not yet independently checked. Nobody has verified the claims on this page against a source, so treat the figures and legal points as a starting point rather than as settled, and confirm anything you are about to act on. How we check things.
What it means
A submission package is the application, recent bank statements, and whatever supporting documents the target funder requires. Brokers submit through portals, syndication platforms or email. Funders log the file against the merchant's EIN and phone number, which is how duplicate submissions are detected.
Submitting to several funders is normal and produces competing offers. Submitting to twenty is a different activity, usually called shotgunning, and it has consequences the merchant experiences and the broker does not: inbound calls from funders and from other brokers who bought the lead data, multiple hard credit inquiries, and a file that appears in several places at once, which some funders read as a sign of distress and price accordingly.
A funder that receives the same merchant from two brokers generally recognises the first submitter for commission purposes and may decline the file outright rather than adjudicate. That is a broker problem that turns into a merchant problem when the best-priced funder refuses the deal on process grounds.
Where this one catches people
Merchants sign a broker agreement that includes consent to share the application with "funding partners" and do not ask how many. The data does not come back. Once statements, EIN, ownership details and phone numbers are in a dozen systems, the call volume is permanent and the second-position pitches start arriving the moment the first deal funds. Ask for the list of funders before authorising submission, and ask for it in writing.
Read next
Submission — common questions
What does submission mean?
A broker packaging a merchant's application and documents and sending them to funders for a decision — and, when sent to many at once, the point where control over the merchant's data is lost.
Where does submission catch people out?
Merchants sign a broker agreement that includes consent to share the application with "funding partners" and do not ask how many. The data does not come back. Once statements, EIN, ownership details and phone numbers are in a dozen systems, the call volume is permanent and the second-position pitches start arriving the moment the first deal funds. Ask for the list of funders before authorising submission, and ask for it in writing.
Is submission the same as an interest rate?
Submission is defined above; if you are comparing it against a rate, check whether the two measures share a time dimension before you put them side by side.
Which products does submission apply to?
It is not specific to one product — it appears across the market.
Is there a worked example of submission?
Not on this entry. Where a term is arithmetic, the arithmetic is shown; this one is not primarily a calculation.
What else should I read alongside submission?
Hard credit pull, Independent sales organization, Soft credit pull, Spread, Stacking.
Has this definition been checked?
Not yet. This entry is drafted and live, and the notice at the top says so. Confirm anything you are about to act on.
Is this legal advice?
No. It is a definition. What a clause does in your contract, in your state, is a question for a lawyer licensed where you are.
Can I suggest a term?
Yes — [email protected]. The glossary grows from what people are actually shown in contracts.