Miami is a major trade gateway — PortMiami, Miami International Airport cargo, and the trade lanes running to Latin America and the Caribbean all move through here — and that creates a specific cash-timing gap for freight brokerages and carriers. A brokerage often pays carriers within 24 to 48 hours through quick pay, while collecting from shippers on 30- to 60-day terms. The company can be profitable and still be waiting on its own money.
A truck sitting still is revenue stopped, not revenue delayed — which is why equipment financing for tractors and trailers is a different conversation from working capital for fuel, payroll, and the gap between paying carriers and collecting from shippers. Customs holds and drayage timing at the port add their own float on top of both.
Size changes the picture sharply. A freight brokerage running multiple carriers and shippers commonly moves $80,000 to $500,000 a month — squarely in our core placement range. An owner-operator running one or two trucks often runs under $20,000 a month and is routed to the dedicated program built for that revenue level, not turned away.
Because the timing, not the total, is the problem. A brokerage typically pays carriers within 24 to 48 hours through quick pay to keep drivers and capacity coming back. Shippers, on the other hand, pay the brokerage on 30- to 60-day terms that are standard across the industry. Illustrative example: a brokerage that quick-pays $180,000 to carriers in a week can still be waiting 45 days to collect a matching $200,000 from shippers — profitable on the invoice, short on the calendar.
Factoring sells specific outstanding invoices to a factor for an advance against them. A merchant cash advance purchases a share of future receivables broadly, repaid as a percentage of ongoing deposits. Both are purchases, not loans — the difference is what's actually being sold, and each fits a different revenue pattern.
| Invoice factoring | Merchant cash advance | |
|---|---|---|
| What's sold | Specific outstanding invoices | A share of future receivables broadly |
| Speed | Often within 24 hours per invoice, once set up | Lump sum upfront, remitted over time |
| Best fit | Carriers and brokerages billing shippers on net terms | Steadier card or ACH deposits, less invoice-driven |
| Cost driver | Discount rate on each invoice factored | Factor rate on the total amount advanced |
| Ongoing use | Factor invoices selectively, month to month | Single advance, remitted until repaid |
Revenue stops the moment the truck does. A tractor down for repair isn't a maintenance line item — it's a lane that isn't running and a driver who isn't hauling. Equipment financing, secured against a replacement or repaired unit, tends to carry the better terms when there's runway to arrange it. Working capital covers the gap in the meantime: payroll, fuel, and the loads still owed to other carriers while the one truck is down.
Equipment financing is secured against the tractor or trailer itself, which is why terms often run longer and pricing can be more favorable — the asset backs the financing. Working capital, whether a line of credit, an advance, or factoring, is unsecured against day-to-day operations: fuel, payroll, and the receivables gap. A growing fleet usually needs both running at once, for different reasons.
Fuel and driver pay are due the moment a container or air shipment moves, regardless of when the carrier or brokerage actually collects. A container held at customs adds days of storage and demurrage before it's even released for drayage, and none of that is billable until the load is delivered and invoiced.
| Event | What's due | When cash actually moves |
|---|---|---|
| Carrier pickup at PortMiami or MIA | Fuel and driver pay, due immediately | — |
| Container held at customs | Storage and demurrage accrue daily | Released once cleared; timing varies by shipment |
| Brokerage quick-pays the carrier | — | Typically within 24–48 hours of delivery |
| Shipper pays the brokerage | — | Typically 30–60 days after invoicing |
Deposits, and how they're structured, drive underwriting here more than fleet size alone. A freight brokerage running multiple carriers and shippers commonly moves $80,000 to $500,000 a month — squarely in the core placement range. An owner-operator with one or two trucks often runs under $20,000 a month, which routes to a dedicated program rather than the core range — a different structure, not a lesser one.
| Profile | Typical monthly deposits | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| Freight brokerage (multiple carriers, multiple shippers) | $80,000–$500,000 | Core placement range |
| Small carrier or fleet (3–10 trucks) | $30,000–$150,000 | Within the $20K–$200K deal range |
| Owner-operator (1–2 trucks) | Often under $20,000 | Routed to the dedicated program — not a decline |
of small business financing applicants nationally received the full amount they sought, per the Federal Reserve's 2026 Small Business Credit Survey — 22% received none. Clean, documented invoices and deposit history are what typically move a carrier or brokerage toward the first group.
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When not to take capital. Financing fuel and payroll every single week, on every lane, signals a rate problem rather than a timing problem — a lane that doesn't cover fuel and driver pay at cost won't be fixed by advancing against it. Renegotiate the lane or fix utilization first. Financing fits a specific, identifiable gap: a down truck, a slow-paying shipper, a customs delay. It isn't a substitute for a lane that loses money every time it runs.
Trucking and logistics funding, sorted — from Brickell. Tell us where the gap sits — quick pay, a down truck, or a customs delay — and get a straight read on what actually fits.
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Under $20K a month in deposits? Most of what's above is priced for businesses doing $50K or more a month in deposits — that's the core of what we place. Funding doesn't stop below that line, though; the structure just changes. There's a program built for exactly your revenue level, and the same rule applies either way.
See what you qualify for →Handled through a funding partner. No upfront cost, and we're paid only if it funds.