Quality of Earnings for SBA Loans
SBA acquisition lending lives or dies on the timeline to close. Shepi compresses the QoE phase from 4–8 weeks to 24–48 hours, with deliverables in the format SBA underwriting expects.
24–48 hrs
Lender-ready output
$1,000
Per project
100%
GL coverage
What SBA Lenders Need from a QoE
SBA SOP 50 10 requires lenders on acquisition loans to independently validate the seller's reported earnings — they can't underwrite on the seller's word. In practice, this means a Quality of Earnings analysis that establishes:
Adjusted EBITDA
Reported EBITDA bridged to a defensible adjusted figure, with each add-back categorized and supported
Revenue quality
Recurring vs project revenue, customer concentration, AR aging, trend stability
Working-capital peg
Multi-period NWC build with turnover ratios and a normalized peg for the close
Cash proof
GL-to-bank reconciliation that surfaces unrecorded liabilities or commingled expenses
Anomaly review
Round-dollar entries, period-end clustering, duplicate detection across 100% of the GL
Owner add-back support
Personal expenses, owner compensation normalization, related-party transactions — each with source detail
Lender-Ready Deliverables
Shepi exports a PDF QoE report and a structured Excel workbook with every supporting schedule. The Excel ties out to the GL, so underwriting can drill into any adjustment without bouncing emails back and forth.
Timeline
| Phase | Traditional CPA QoE | Shepi |
|---|---|---|
| Engagement letter / kickoff | 1–2 weeks | Same day |
| Data ingestion & mapping | 1–2 weeks | Hours |
| Analysis & adjustments | 2–3 weeks | Same day after ingestion |
| Draft report | 1 week | Same day |
| Total | 4–8 weeks | 24–48 hours |
Shepi vs Traditional QoE for SBA Deals
| Dimension | Traditional CPA QoE | Shepi |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | $25,000–$50,000 | $1,000–$5,000 |
| Timeline impact on closing | Often gating | Removes the constraint |
| Re-runs after data corrections | Bill again | Included |
| Lender review workbook | PDF + custom Excel | PDF + structured Excel with GL traceability |
| Attestation opinion | Available | Not offered — analysis only |