What's the lowest FICO you've placed?

Sub-500 FICO with active business revenue and bankruptcy 18 months post-discharge. The acquirer's review is holistic, not score-only.

Can I get approved during an open bankruptcy?

Generally no — most acquirers require discharge before approval. We can place 30–90 days post-discharge with a clean payment plan in place.

Will the hard pull hurt my credit further?

Acquirer hard pull is 3–7 points typically. We do a soft pre-qualification first to confirm fit before any hard pull happens — so the only hard pull is on a file we're confident will approve.

Can I add a co-signer with good credit?

Yes — adding a 25%+ owner with strong personal credit moves the underwriting math significantly and often gets you better pricing.

Do you charge upfront for bad-credit approval?

No. Anyone charging an upfront 'application fee' or 'guarantee fee' for a high-risk MID is running a scam. Acquirers do not charge upfront fees, period.

Bad Credit Merchant Account | Approval with Poor Personal Credit

Bad Credit Merchant Account

A 580 FICO doesn't have to mean no merchant account. We work with acquirers who underwrite the business — revenue, processing history, and chargeback ratio — not just the owner's personal credit. Bankruptcy, defaults, and sub-650 credit are routinely placed.

Approval with personal FICO 500–650 routine

Prior bankruptcy (Chapter 7 or 13) underwritten 12+ months post-discharge

Business credit and processing history weighted over personal

Higher reserve, but no upfront fees and no 'guaranteed approval' scams

Pathway to standard pricing after 6–12 months clean history

Domestic + offshore options for harder files

What triggers this status

Most low-risk processors run a hard credit pull on owners with 25%+ ownership and decline on any FICO below 650 or any open bankruptcy. Aggregators (Stripe, Square) don't pull credit at signup but freeze funds and ask for personal financials the moment they detect material processing volume.

High-risk specialist acquirers underwrite the whole picture: business revenue, the bank statements, prior processing if any, the website, and the vertical. Personal credit is one input, not the only input.

What underwriters look at

Business revenue stability

Consistent monthly bank deposits matter more than a single FICO number.

Prior processing ratio

Low chargebacks on prior processing offsets weak personal credit significantly.

Time since credit event

12+ months since bankruptcy discharge or major default is typical placement minimum.

Personal guarantee structure

Some acquirers offer 'business-only' guarantees on stronger files; most require personal.

What we need to rebuild your file

Merchant application + voided check
Last 3 months bank + processing statements
Written explanation of credit events (bankruptcy, defaults, judgments)
Discharge papers if bankruptcy
Government ID for all 25%+ owners
Articles / EIN letter

Path back to approval

The path is: specialist acquirer + clean current operations + transparent credit narrative. Bad-credit MIDs price 3.95% – 5.45% + $0.25 with 5–10% rolling reserve. After 6–12 months of clean processing, we re-shop your file and pricing typically drops into the standard high-risk band.

Avoid anyone promising "no credit check" or "guaranteed approval" — every legitimate acquirer pulls credit. The right question isn't whether they pull, it's whether they decline solely on the score.

Approval timeline

1
Soft pre-qualification (same day)
We review your credit narrative and business metrics before any hard pull.
2
Document collection (1–2 days)
Bank statements + credit-event documentation + business records.
3
Underwriting (3–7 business days)
Specialist acquirer reviews the full file, not just FICO.
4
MID live + step-down
Clean processing for 6–12 months → we re-shop at standard high-risk pricing.

Bad Credit Merchant Account

Get My Free Approval Review

What triggers this status

What underwriters look at

What we need to rebuild your file

Path back to approval

Approval timeline

Frequently asked questions

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