Can I Use an SBA Loan to Buy a Shopify Store?
Written by Christopher Krassnig - Founder - Kairos Exchange and ZenoX Media. Last reviewed 11 August 2026.
Yes, if you are a US buyer and the store has documented, provable earnings. The SBA 7(a) program names a change of ownership as an eligible use, with loans up to 5 million dollars. The catch is the paperwork: the required equity injection runs about 10 percent, and most online store sales are asset deals that lean almost entirely on goodwill.
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What the Loan Requires
The SBA's own page on 7(a) loans names a change of ownership, complete or partial, as an eligible use, with a maximum loan amount of 5 million dollars. Lender guidance built on the SBA's underwriting rules puts the buyer's required equity injection on a full acquisition at roughly 10 percent of total project cost. Up to half of that can come from a seller note, so long as the buyer still funds at least 5 percent from their own cash, and that note has to sit on full standby until the SBA loan itself is repaid.
Why an Asset Deal Adds a Step
Most online store sales are asset purchases, and an asset deal on a Shopify store is almost entirely goodwill, since there is little real estate or equipment behind it. Current SBA lending policy draws a line at 250,000 dollars of goodwill or intangible value: cross it, and the lender has to order an independent business valuation from a credentialed appraiser before the loan can close. Plan the time and the fee for that step into your calendar, because most real store acquisitions clear the line.
What the Lender Actually Underwrites Against
A bank does not lend against a seller's spreadsheet. It lends against tax returns, bank statements, and an order ledger that reconciles to the revenue claimed. The logic follows from that: a store whose numbers are already verified from real order data hands the lender the documentation it was going to ask for anyway, instead of a claim it has to chase down and confirm itself first.
Related questions
Checked against
- SBA: 7(a) loan program details - read 11 August 2026
- Pursuit Lending: SBA 7(a) equity injection requirements - read 11 August 2026
- QuickRead, National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts, QuickRead (NACVA): the SBA SOP 50 10 8 goodwill valuation threshold (2025) - read 11 August 2026
Buying a Store Somewhere Else?
Kairos Due Diligence works on any deal - Flippa, a broker, a private sale. A person reads the store's raw numbers and writes you a report. If the deal is bad, the report says walk away. From EUR 1.5k, no account needed.
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