The majority of start-up or small businesses use limited equity financing. As with debt financing, additional equity often comes from non-professional investors such as friends, relatives or colleagues.

However, most common source of professional equity funding comes from venture capitalists. These are institutional risk takers and may be groups of wealthy individuals or major financial institutions. Most specialise in one or a few closely related industries.

Venture capitalists are often seen as deep-pocketed financial benefactors looking for start-ups in which to invest their money, but they most often prefer three-to-five-year old companies with potential to become major regional or national concerns which will return higher-than-average profits. Venture capitalists may scrutinise thousands of potential investments each year but only invest in a few.

When applying for a military loan, you will need to be prepared with all of your military credentials in addition to your personal information. One major difference between most military loans and other types of loans is that no valuable assets will be needed as collateral. These loans are typically known as unsecured loans. Keep in mind that you can usually pay principal of your military loans early without any interest, fees, or penalties. However, your past credit history does make a difference. So be sure to stay out of debt now and keep your credit history clear. If you have good credit, military loan lender is more likely to give a good rate.