First Data to Provide Small Business Loans Through AdvanceMe

DENVER – First Data Corp. said yesterday it plans to use its First Data Merchant Services unit to provide loans to small businesses. The company said it has signed a preferred provider agreement with AdvanceMe to provide expedited small business loans. The deal calls for First Data Merchant to make AdvanceMe’s Merchant Cash Advance available as an alternative source of capital. First Data is the middle of a pronounced financial restructuring, with agreements to buy companies while it is being sold in one of the biggest leverage buyouts ever. The company announced a deal Monday to acquire FundsXpress, a week after completing the acquisition of Wells Fargo’s Instant Cash Services ATM network; and is in the process of being taken over by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. for $29 billion.