How to Verify a Virginia MCA Provider’s SCC Registration

TL;DR

Why Virginia Requires SCC Registration

Virginia’s HB 1027 (the Sales-Based Financing Registration and Disclosure Act, signed by Governor Glenn Youngkin) took effect July 1, 2022, with every covered provider required to register by November 1, 2022. It applies to merchant cash advances — structured as purchases of future receivables — and any other “sales-based financing” product offered to Virginia businesses for transactions of $500,000 or less.

Under Va. Code § 6.2-2230, any provider that extends more than five such transactions per year to Virginia businesses must:

1. Register with the Virginia SCC’s Bureau of Financial Institutions — a one-time $1,000 initial registration fee, then a $500 renewal due each September 15 (an unpaid renewal makes the registration expire by operation of law, which is one reason a previously listed provider can drop off the registry)
2. Deliver nine required disclosures before the transaction closes (Va. Code § 6.2-2231) — total repayment, finance charge, payment schedule, fees, prepayment terms, collateral, and broker compensation
3. Prohibit confession-of-judgment clauses in sub-$500K contracts — COJ provisions are void and unenforceable as a matter of Virginia law
4. Select Virginia as the governing forum for any dispute arising from the transaction

As of December 31, 2023, the BFI reported 117 registered sales-based financing providers in Virginia — a meaningful number, but a fraction of the total MCA market. That figure is a point-in-time count from the Bureau’s annual report; the live Licensee Search is the current source of truth, so always confirm against it rather than this number. Unregistered providers can and do solicit Virginia businesses.

Step-by-Step: How to Look Up a Provider

Step 1: Go to the Licensee Search

Open a browser and navigate to:

https://www.scc.virginia.gov/licenseesearch

This is the official Virginia SCC Bureau of Financial Institutions Licensee Search tool. It covers regulated financial institutions operating in Virginia, including sales-based financing providers registered under HB 1027.

Step 2: Select the Correct Entity Type

The search interface includes a dropdown for entity type. Select:

“Sales-based financing providers”

This is the exact category name the BFI uses for HB 1027 registrations. MCA providers are not listed under “consumer finance licensees,” “short-term lenders,” or “check cashers” — those are separate license categories. If you search under the wrong type, you may get a false “not found” result.

Step 3: Enter the Provider’s Legal Name

Enter the provider’s legal business name — the name used in their corporate filings, not a trade name or DBA. If you’re unsure, check the signature block of the MCA contract or offer letter, which typically includes the legal entity name (e.g., “XYZ Funding LLC” rather than “XYZ Funding” or “XYZFund.com”).

Search tips:

• Try partial name searches if the full legal name is uncertain
• Omit “LLC,” “Inc.,” or “Corp.” if the first search returns no results — try again with just the base name
• Spelling must be close — the search engine does not auto-correct
• Parent companies and subsidiaries register separately; if one entity in a funding group is registered, that doesn’t cover affiliates

Step 4: Review the Result

If the provider is registered, the result will show the company name, registration status, and registration date. A current active registration confirms the provider has met HB 1027’s administrative requirement with the Virginia SCC.

If the provider is not found, see the next section before drawing conclusions.

What to Do If a Provider Isn’t in the Registry

A missing result does not automatically mean the provider is violating HB 1027 — there are two legitimate reasons a provider may not appear:

1. The five-or-fewer exemption. Providers completing five or fewer sales-based financing transactions per 12-month period in Virginia are not required to register. A legitimate small or regional funder that rarely does Virginia deals may not be in the system.

2. The $500,000 threshold. If the advance you are being offered exceeds $500,000, HB 1027 does not apply — registration is not required for larger transactions.

If neither exemption applies — the provider is active in Virginia and offering you a sub-$500K advance — a missing registration is a compliance concern. Take these steps:

Contact the BFI directly to confirm whether the provider has registered under a different legal name or has a pending registration:

• Phone: 804-371-9657 or 1-800-552-7945 (toll-free)
• Email: bfiquestions@scc.virginia.gov
• Hours: 8:15 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday–Friday
• Mail: Bureau of Financial Institutions, P.O. Box 640, Richmond, VA 23218-0640

File a complaint if the BFI confirms the provider is unregistered and does not qualify for an exemption. Unregistered providers are in violation of Va. Code § 6.2-2230. The Virginia Attorney General has enforcement authority under Va. Code § 6.2-2238. Filing a complaint initiates an investigation that can result in civil penalties — and may protect other Virginia businesses from the same provider.

Reconsider the transaction. Proceeding with an unregistered provider on a sub-$500K advance means:

• The provider may not be legally required to give you HB 1027’s nine required disclosures
• The COJ ban and Virginia-forum requirement may be harder to invoke if HB 1027’s registration provision has been violated
• You have weaker legal footing if a dispute arises

What Registration Does — and Doesn’t — Mean

Registration confirms:

• The provider has filed with the Virginia SCC and paid the required fees ($1,000 initial; $500 annually)
• The provider is subject to Virginia SCC oversight and examination authority
• The provider is required to comply with HB 1027’s disclosure requirements and COJ ban
• The BFI has the provider’s contact information and can reach them if a complaint is filed

Registration does NOT confirm:

• That the provider’s terms are fair or reasonable — a registered provider can still charge a 1.40+ factor rate (roughly 50–100%+ APR depending on term)
• That the required nine disclosures are accurate or complete — always verify the numbers yourself using the MCA calculator
• That the provider will honor reconciliation requests or prepayment terms as promised — these must be in the contract
• That the provider has a clean complaint history — check the BBB and CFPB complaint database separately

Registration is the floor, not the ceiling. Use it as a first filter, then do the full contract review.

What HB 1027 Requires Beyond Registration

Once you’ve confirmed registration, verify that the provider has delivered the nine mandatory disclosures required by Va. Code § 6.2-2231 before you sign:

1. Total financing amount and disbursement amount — what you’re getting, and what you’ll actually receive in your account after any fees withheld at funding
2. Finance charge — the total dollar cost of the advance
3. Total repayment amount — disbursement plus finance charge; this is the number to put into the MCA calculator
4. Estimated number of payments — based on projected sales volume
5. Estimated payment amounts — how much per day or per week
6. All other fees — origination, processing, wire, documentation, any fee not included in the finance charge
7. Prepayment and refinancing policies — whether early repayment saves you anything (usually it doesn’t), and any prepayment penalty
8. Collateral requirements or security interests — any UCC-1 lien or personal guarantee
9. Broker compensation — if a broker connected you to the provider, what they’re being paid

Virginia does not require APR disclosure. After you receive the total repayment amount, use the MCA calculator to convert it to an annualized rate you can compare against a bank line of credit or SBA loan.

Virginia’s MCA Law in Context

HB 1027 sits in the upper tier of state MCA regulation for one key reason: it bans confession-of-judgment clauses outright for sub-$500K transactions. Most other disclosure states — California, New York, Florida, Georgia, Utah — require disclosure but still permit COJ. For Virginia businesses, a COJ clause in a covered MCA contract is void as a matter of law, with no exceptions.

For a full comparison of Virginia’s law against other states, see the Virginia MCA state guide. For how COJ clauses work and why they’re dangerous, see the guide at /blog/confession-of-judgment-mca. For a breakdown of how Virginia’s disclosure requirements compare to California, New York, and Florida, see /blog/state-mca-disclosure-laws-compared.

Quick Reference

Registry URL: https://www.scc.virginia.gov/licenseesearch

Entity type to select: Sales-based financing providers

BFI contact:

• Phone: 804-371-9657 or 1-800-552-7945 (toll-free)
• Email: bfiquestions@scc.virginia.gov
• Address: Bureau of Financial Institutions, P.O. Box 640, Richmond, VA 23218-0640
• Hours: 8:15 a.m.–5:00 p.m., Monday–Friday

Registered provider count (as of Dec 31, 2023): 117

Coverage threshold: Transactions of $500,000 or less to Virginia businesses

Exemption: Providers completing 5 or fewer Virginia transactions per 12-month period

Law: Virginia HB 1027 (Sales-Based Financing Registration and Disclosure Act), effective July 1, 2022

Key statutes: Va. Code § 6.2-2230 (registration), § 6.2-2231 (disclosures), § 6.2-2238 (enforcement)

Sources: Virginia Code § 6.2-2230 through § 6.2-2238 (law.lis.virginia.gov/vacodefull/title6.2/chapter22.1/); Virginia SCC Bureau of Financial Institutions (scc.virginia.gov/regulated-industries/bureau-of-financial-institutions/); Virginia BFI 2023 Summary of Operations; SCC Licensee Search (scc.virginia.gov/licenseesearch).