New Research Reveals Small Businesses Lose $22K on Average Due to Lack of Capital

PayPal has passed $30 billion USD in global loan originations and has extended more than 1.4 million loans to more than 420,000 business accounts globally. This includes more than 55,000 loans to over $1.4 billion AUD in Australia since PayPal Working Capital was launched in 2013, filling a critical gap for small and medium businesses (SMBs) looking for capital to maintain a healthy cash flow and grow.

Small businesses play a critical role in the global economy and within local communities. They are job creators, community builders, and drivers of innovation and opportunity. Small and medium businesses account for 97.2% of all businesses in Australia, employing over 5 million people and contributing to one-third of Australia’s GDP.^[2] Despite these contributions, access to capital continues to be a critical challenge for SMBs.

PayPal’s 2025 eCommerce Index research found more than two-thirds of Australian SMBs (67%) say they’ve missed out on potential revenue due to insufficient capital with more than half (59%) reporting they’ve lost more than $10,000 in revenue.^[3] On average, Australian SMBs estimate they have lost $22,000 of revenue as a result of a lack of working capital.³

To help fuel small business growth and prosperity, PayPal offers financing solutions including PayPal Working Capital in Australia, the US, UK, Germany, France and the Netherlands.

PayPal Working Capital, launched in 2013, is repaid as a percentage of a business’s PayPal sales. Small businesses leverage PayPal Working Capital to help stock up on inventory, hire new employees, make payroll, invest in their businesses and scale. Since its launch, PayPal Working Capital has helped over 13,000 Australian SMB’s, with more than $1.4 billion offered in financing. More than 75% of the businesses which have taken out a PPWC loan have secured a second loan.

“Access to capital is consistently one of the top challenges small businesses face as they look to maintain and scale their businesses,” shared Andrew Toon, General Manager, Products and Payments, PayPal Australia.

“Traditional business loans are not only difficult for small businesses to get in the first place, but the application process can be challenging and prohibitively time consuming. PayPal’s financing solutions have a streamlined online application process with no lengthy paperwork or extensive credit checks, and approved PayPal loans are funded within minutes. We launched PayPal Working Capital to serve this important need, and to provide a quick and responsible way to inject much needed capital to help fuel small business growth.”

Small businesses have seen tremendous value in PayPal Working Capital, as both offerings continue to receive remarkable feedback from customers.

PayPal Working Capital has achieved a Net Promoter Score in the mid-80s over the last six years, with Australian small business customers appreciating its simplicity and speed of application.

This experience rings true for Carl Florance, founder of DADDYRICHRECORDS which was born out of Carl’s passion for collecting vinyl records, as an outlet to share his love for music with his community. While DADDYRICHRECORDS is a thriving small business today, its early days were not without struggle.

“The approval from PayPal Working Capital was monumental in changing how our business ran,” shared Carl.

“When I was approved, the funds were instantaneously available, which opened up the doors for us to purchase our first vehicle. We were able to do so much more to build the business, expanding DADDYRICHRECORDS from just online to include a brick-and-mortar store.”

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