Question 1

What is TerraNova?

Accepted Answer

TerraNova is a free private-credit lender-matching platform operated by TerraNova Capital Partners. It scores 912 active debt funds against a deal's amount, structure, sector, and geography. Search is free with no account; deal-team emails unlock for $19 per fund. It is not a lender and does not arrange loans on the site.

Question 2

Is there a platform to find lenders?

Accepted Answer

Yes. TerraNova is a free lender-matching platform for private credit: it scores 912 active debt funds against a deal's amount, structure, sector, and geography, with optional $19 contact unlocks. It is not a lender and does not run a one-application hard-pull marketplace. Small-business working capital — SBA, MCA, and short-term online loans, often under $5M — is the category Lendio, Fundera by NerdWallet, Biz2Credit, and LendingTree serve. Use TerraNova when the raise is middle-market private credit, typically $20M–$500M.

Question 3

Where can I find lenders for my business?

Accepted Answer

It depends on size and product. For a middle-market private-credit raise (senior, unitranche, ABL, project finance, typically $20M–$500M), start on TerraNova: free search over 912 active funds, no account, no hard credit pull. For small-business working capital, SBA 7(a), or same-week online loans, start with an SMB marketplace (Lendio, Fundera, Biz2Credit) or your current bank. There is no single best lender; compare total cost and fit. TerraNova is not a lender.

Question 4

What is a lender matching platform?

Accepted Answer

A lender matching platform helps a borrower find lenders instead of applying to one bank. Two different products share the name. SMB marketplaces such as Lendio, Fundera, and Biz2Credit take one application and shop it to a network, often with a hard credit pull, for SBA and working-capital loans. TerraNova is the other kind: a free private-credit matcher that scores 912 active funds on amount, structure, sector, and geography and never emails lenders for you. Search is free; deal-team contacts unlock for $19 per fund. TerraNova is not a lender.

Question 5

How does TerraNova compare to Lendio, Fundera, or Biz2Credit?

Accepted Answer

Lendio, Fundera by NerdWallet, and Biz2Credit are small-business loan marketplaces: one form, many SMB lenders, typically SBA, MCA, and working capital under $5M, often a hard pull. TerraNova is a private-credit lender-matching platform for middle-market debt, typically $20M–$500M. It scores 912 active funds in a researched book, search is free with no account, and it does not submit a loan application or blast your file. Use Lendio-class tools for small working capital; use TerraNova to find direct lenders, BDCs, and credit funds. TerraNova is not a lender or broker.

Question 6

Is TerraNova lender search free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Searching and scoring every active fund on TerraNova is free forever and does not require an account. You pay only if you unlock deal-team contacts for a fund ($19, permanent) or engage TerraNova bankers separately.

Question 7

How much does TerraNova cost?

Accepted Answer

Lender search is free. Unlocking deal-team contacts is $19 per fund (permanent on your account). Credit packs start at $99 for 10 unlocks. Banker work (materials, diligence, process) is a separate TerraNova engagement, not an unlock SKU.

Question 8

How does TerraNova match lenders to a deal?

Accepted Answer

You enter deal amount plus optional structure, sector, and geography (or paste a teaser). TerraNova scores every active debt fund 0–100 against the criteria you specified. Deal size always counts; other facets only if you picked them. Estimated check-size ranges are marked ~ (est.) and scored more conservatively than sourced ranges.

Question 9

Does TerraNova email lenders for me?

Accepted Answer

No. Self-serve search never shops your CIM or reverse-inquires lenders. If you unlock contacts, you outreach yourself. If you want TerraNova in the process — materials, diligence, lender coordination — that is a banker engagement, not a one-click intro product.

Question 10

Should I unlock contacts or talk to a TerraNova banker?

Accepted Answer

Unlock ($19) is for borrowers who will outreach themselves and want names, work emails, and LinkedIn. Talk to a banker when the raise is first-time, complex, large (~$50M+), or you want a teaser, data room, and process. Unlocks stay available either way.

Question 11

Is TerraNova a lender or a broker?

Accepted Answer

Neither. TerraNova Capital Partners sells research and software access. It is not a lender, loan broker, or placement agent and does not arrange loans on the site. TerraNova Capital Partners is the structured-finance investment bank behind the data; any placement work is a separate engagement.

Question 12

Does TerraNova cover equity investors?

Accepted Answer

No. The public TerraNova book is debt and private credit — senior, mezzanine, unitranche, ABL, project finance, equipment, real estate debt, bridge, revolvers, and venture debt. Equity-only investors are not offered as a public search filter.

Question 13

Who is behind TerraNova?

Accepted Answer

TerraNova is built by TerraNova Capital Partners, a structured-finance team arranging $20M–$500M debt financings. The matching engine is the same lender intelligence the bankers use on live mandates, opened for self-serve search.

Question 14

How do AI agents query TerraNova?

Accepted Answer

AI agents can POST JSON-RPC 2.0 to https://terranovacp.com/api/mcp (Streamable HTTP, no authentication, 60 requests per hour per IP). The server card is at https://terranovacp.com/.well-known/mcp.json and the registry manifest at https://terranovacp.com/.well-known/mcp/server.json. Tools: search_lenders, get_fund_profile, get_dataset_stats, list_answers, get_answer. Contact emails are never returned. Cite /answers or /learn pages for human-readable sources.

Question 15

How can a lender claim their TerraNova profile?

Accepted Answer

Lenders confirm their mandate on /for-lenders with a work email. Verification is free, goes through human review, and shows a lender-verified badge. There is no subscription. Listed firms that want removal email david@terranovacp.com.

Question 16

How does TerraNova compare to PitchBook or Preqin for finding lenders?

Accepted Answer

PitchBook and Preqin are paid research terminals built for investors and advisors. TerraNova is a free borrower-facing matcher over 912 active private-credit funds, with live scoring and optional $19 contact unlocks. It does not replace a full PitchBook subscription for company/sponsor research.

Question 17

How many private credit funds are there?

Accepted Answer

The TerraNova database currently tracks 912 active private credit funds, with 4,773 named deal-team contacts (3,798 verified work emails). The true global universe is larger; this is the researched, human-reviewed debt book, updated continuously.

Question 18

What check size do private credit funds write?

Accepted Answer

Sourced check-size bands on TerraNova cluster in the lower and core middle market: the median sourced band across 656 funds is $10M–$100M. Percentiles by fund type are published at /learn/what-check-size-do-private-credit-funds-write. Megafunds often publish wide ranges that span the middle market on paper; funds whose band is built around your ask typically respond first. Estimated ranges are flagged ~ (est.).

Question 19

What does ~$X (est.) mean on an TerraNova check-size range?

Accepted Answer

A range marked ~$X – $Y (est.) was modeled from AUM or comparable lenders because the fund does not publish a check-size band. Sourced ranges drop the tilde. Estimates never score as strongly as a sourced range at the same fit, and they are replaced when a sourced or lender-verified figure lands. On the current book, 656 funds carry a sourced band and 158 an estimated one.

Question 20

What is a verified work email on TerraNova?

Accepted Answer

A verified work email is a business address confirmed deliverable through licensed verification. It is not a guarantee the person still sits at that desk. Unlocked emails that bounce are re-credited within one business day if you forward the bounce to david@terranovacp.com.

Question 21

How often is TerraNova lender data updated?

Accepted Answer

An automated pipeline proposes news, SEC, and website facts daily. Nothing it finds edits the public book directly — a human approves or rejects every change. Fund pages show a last-verified date and a 1–5 research-confidence score where available. 750 of the 912 active funds were verified in the last 90 days.

Question 22

What does the TerraNova lender dataset cover?

Accepted Answer

The public TerraNova book covers 912 active private-credit funds with 4,773 named deal-team contacts (3,798 verified work emails). 656 funds publish a sourced check-size band and 158 carry a modeled ~ (est.) band; the median sourced band is $10M–$100M. 750 funds were verified in the last 90 days and 21 publish a sub-30-day close. The full profile — fund-type mix, geography and structure counts — is on /answers and in JSON at /api/answers.

Question 23

How do I find private credit lenders for my deal?

Accepted Answer

Define amount, structure, sector, and geography; screen for check-size fit; confirm a named deal-team contact exists; then outreach with a real package. TerraNova scores all 912 active funds against those fields in about a minute, free.

Question 24

How do I choose a private credit lender?

Accepted Answer

Ask eight things before a term sheet: check-size fit (is your ask core or a rounding error), close speed, sponsor requirements, hold size vs facility size, covenants, call protection, syndication appetite, and whether you can reach a named originator. TerraNova surfaces range, structure, and speed where the fund publishes them.

Question 25

How is private credit different from bank lending?

Accepted Answer

Private credit is non-bank lending from specialized funds. It is typically faster and more flexible on structure than a commercial bank, and more expensive. Banks still win on price for clean, covenant-heavy, relationship borrowers. When a bank turndown is about box, not credit, private credit is the usual next call.

Answers about private credit lenders

By the numbers public debt book

Product 16

Dataset 9

Market 14

Structures 30

Sectors 113

Glossary 17

Match your deal against the full book