How Brex credit limits work

OverviewBrex underwritingLimits by account type$0 credit limitsDisclaimer

Overview

Brex is unique in that its credit model is flexible enough to underwrite many businesses that have limited operating history, revenue, or profitability. In order to give you the highest credit limit possible, our underwriting model relies on maintaining visibility into your company’s cash balance and transactions. Because of this, Brex credit limits adapt to the unique financial characteristics of your business. The information below can help you understand how and why your Brex credit limit may change.


Brex underwriting

There are three ways Brex determines a credit limit for a Brex card:

  1. Connected bank underwriting (available for accounts making monthly payments)
  2. Bank statement-based underwriting (available for accounts making monthly payments)
  3. Brex business account underwriting (required for daily payments and available for monthly qualified accounts making monthly payments)

Since all three methods use your current balance to determine your limit, your limit will never exceed the cash you have available. This helps to create a safe spending environment where you can build your business credit.

Connected bank underwriting

Brex uses Finicity, Plaid, or Teller to connect to your bank accounts so we can view account transactions and balances. Your card's credit limit is directly related to the cash balance in your connected bank account. if applicable. We may also consider your rolling 30-day average balance. As those balances fluctuate, so may your limit. The best way to maintain a stable credit limit is to maintain a stable cash balance in the account(s) you connect to Brex. Drastic or consistent decreases in connected account balances will result in lower limits, potentially as low as $0 in some circumstances. Account and card admins can update bank connections or add new ones from your Brex dashboard. Finicity, Plaid, and Teller support many, but not all, bank accounts. Note: Brex will assign you a credit limit based on the total cash balance we have visibility into. If you maintain cash at multiple financial institutions that you cannot connect to Brex, providing us with statements for each account helps us give you the highest limit possible. Upload your two most recent monthly statements for additional accounts through this secure file uploader or the Financial documents page in your Brex dashboard.

Statement underwriting

All Brex customers are required to connect a bank account through Finicity, Plaid, or Teller. In the rare case where this isn’t possible, we may agree to waive this requirement and accept bank statements instead of an account connection. We'll proactively email you at the beginning of each month to collect your previous month’s statement(s) so your limit is reflective of your most recent month’s cash balance. Similar to connected bank underwriting, we use bank statements to access your cash balance and transaction history and assign you a credit limit that is directly related to the cash balance stated on your statement. We accept statements that meet these criteria:

  • Bank statements must be submitted each month.
  • Statements must be official bank PDFs; no screenshots or scanned copies will be accepted.
  • Two full months of statements are required each time a new account is introduced.
Shared bank account underwriting

If two Brex accounts share a bank balance, you may be eligible to split their overall credit limit. Here’s an example where this would be applicable: If you have two companies and want to allocate 60% of the shared limit to Company 1 and 40% of the shared limit to Company 2, if we approve the allocation we’ll split your limit as such:

  • Company 1’s split limit would be 60% of the limit from all connected banks and statements.
  • Company 2’s split limit would be 40% of the limit from all connected banks and statements.

Depending on the specifics of the split, we may require a parent or affiliate company to sign a guarantee. If you have any questions about your specific situation, please feel free to contact Brex Support.


Limits by account type

Please read the relevant section below, which will outline how your credit limit is determined for your Brex card based on your product type.

Monthly payments

Your credit limit is calculated up to 5-20% of your aggregate bank balance from banks connected either via Plaid/Finicity/Teller or banks that you submit statements for. If you have a Brex business account, you can choose for your limit to be based on your aggregate Brex business account balance, instead. Brex business account-based limits will be up to 30% of your aggregate account balance(s). To determine your exact limit, we look at both your current cash balance and your 30-day rolling average balance. As your cash balance in your linked account increases or decreases, so may your credit limit. By default, payments to settle your statements are due monthly. If you have a Brex business account in addition to a card with monthly payments, you can switch between a monthly payment cycle and a daily payment cycle). Your autopay account can be any linked bank account, including Brex business accounts. If your account makes monthly payments, you’re eligible to redeem your Brex points for any of the following:

  • Cash back (if you have a Brex business account)
  • Statement credit (if you don’t have a Brex business account)
  • Gift cards
  • Travel
  • Transfer to miles
Daily payments

Your Brex card limit can be calculated up to 100% of your primary Brex business account’s balance. If you have more than one Brex business account, the balance of any besides the primary business account won’t impact your limit. Payments to settle your statement are due daily. Your Brex business account will be your primary payment account, though if you have more than one, you can choose between them. If your account makes daily payments, you’re eligible to redeem your Brex points for any of the following:

  • Cash back
  • Gift cards
  • Travel
  • Transfer to miles
Net 60-day statements

Brex previously offered cards with net 60-day payments to certain customers. Grandfathered accounts may maintain their net 60-day statement periods, but otherwise, Brex no longer supports net 60-day payments. For accounts that have been grandfathered into this product, your Brex card limit is directly related to your estimated revenue reported in your accounts that are connected to Brex. Your limit depends on the balances of connected bank accounts and/or bank/financial statements, as well as any connected ecommerce platforms such as Amazon or Shopify. As your revenue increases or decreases, so will your limit. If you have a Brex business account and are making 60-day payments, your limit will still be based solely on your revenue. Your Brex business account balance will not impact your limit.


$0 credit limits

There are several events that may prompt Brex to reduce your credit limit to zero. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • The connection to your linked external bank account loses connectivity or becomes out-of-date.
  • If you’re being underwritten by bank statements and we don’t have your most up-to-date documents.
  • You have an insufficient cash balance to meet minimum underwriting requirements (for monthly statements).
  • You aren't meeting the minimum monthly revenue requirements (for grandfathered accounts with net 60-day payment cycles).
  • There are failed payments on your account.

Disclaimer

Credit limits are calculated in part by Brex’s ongoing account-specific determination of risk. These credit limits are subject to change at any time at our sole discretion in accordance with our rights outlined in the Platform Agreement.

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