Business

5 Tips for Obtaining a Mortgage if You’re Self-Employed

Published

3 years ago

December 20, 2022

Being self-employed can be a great way to make a living, but it also has its own unique set of challenges. One of the biggest is obtaining a mortgage. Many lenders are wary of self-employed borrowers because they don’t have the same income stability and proof of income as those with regular 9-to-5 jobs. However, that doesn’t mean taking out a mortgage is impossible if you’re self-employed. You can do some things to improve your chances of getting a mortgage, including using non-traditional lending. Here are five tips to help you on your journey and some alternative credit examples.

Know Your Credit Score

One of the first things to do when applying for a mortgage is to understand your credit score. Lenders will look at this number to determine how likely you are to pay back your loan in full and on time. A good credit score (typically anything above 600) will give you an edge when applying for a home loan, so make sure you know where you stand before diving into the application process. You can check your credit score online for free or purchase one from one of the major credit reporting bureaus like TransUnion or Equifax.

Gather Your Paperwork

Before applying for a loan, ensure that all of your paperwork is in order and easy to access. This includes everything from tax returns and bank statements to business licenses and profit and loss statements. Having these documents ready will speed up the application process significantly. Lenders won’t have to wait around while you scramble to find them.

Prove Your Income Stability

Since lenders need assurance that they’ll be paid back in full, having proof of income stability is key when applying for a mortgage if you’re self-employed. Most creditors will require two years’ worth of tax returns along with any other paperwork that proves your ability to pay back money owed (such as business licenses).

Try to provide evidence that shows your income has been steadily increasing over time. This helps demonstrate financial responsibility, which can significantly boost your approval chances.

Show Proof Of Assets And Liabilities

In addition to proving income stability, lenders may also want proof that you have enough assets available should something happen, and payments need to be made late or missed altogether. This could include savings accounts, investment portfolios, etc. Also, showing them any liabilities such as loans or other debts owed could show them that while these obligations exist, they aren’t too large, where they would interfere with making payments on any new mortgages taken out.

Look Into Non-Traditional Lenders

Suppose traditional lenders such as banks are not approving your loan applications due to a lack of income verification or low credit scores. In that case, consider looking into alternative lenders, such as online lenders or private investors, who offer different types of loans with more flexible requirements than traditional banks do. These types of lenders often have fewer restrictions when it comes to approving applicants who cannot provide two years’ worth of tax returns or have lower credit scores than what banks typically prefer. While these alternative credit examples can come with higher interest rates than those offered by traditional lenders, they could still be beneficial in helping you obtain financing if other options are not available.

Conclusion

Getting approved for a mortgage if you’re self-employed can be difficult but not impossible. By following these tips, you’ll be well on your way toward achieving homeownership quickly and securely. Success when applying for a mortgage as someone who is their own boss won’t be too far behind.

Business

Inside the $4.3B Quarter: What’s Fueling Black Banx’s Record Revenues

Published

5 days ago

January 16, 2026

Matthew Wiles

Every quarter brings fresh headlines in fintech, but few make the kind of impact achieved by Black Banx in Q2 2025. The Toronto-based global digital banking group, founded by Michael Gastauer, reported an extraordinary USD 4.3 billion in revenue and a record USD 1.6 billion in pre-tax profit, while improving its cost-to-income ratio to 63%.

These results not only highlight the company’s operational efficiency but also mark a pivotal moment in its journey from challenger to global leader. The big question is: what’s fueling such impressive financial performance?

Customer Growth as the Core Driver

One of the clearest engines of revenue growth is Black Banx’s expanding customer base. By Q2 2025, the platform had reached 84 million clients worldwide, up from 69 million at the end of 2024. This 15 million net gain in six months demonstrates both the attractiveness of its services and the scalability of its model.

Unlike traditional banks, which rely heavily on branch expansion, Black Banx leverages digital-first onboarding that allows customers to open accounts within minutes using just a smartphone. This approach is especially effective in regions underserved by legacy institutions, where access to affordable financial tools is in high demand.

More customers don’t just mean higher transaction volumes—they generate a compounding effect where network size, brand trust, and service adoption reinforce one another.

Real-Time Payments and Cross-Border Solutions

A major contributor to Q2 revenues is the platform’s real-time payments infrastructure. Black Banx enables instant cross-border transfers across its 28 supported fiat currencies and multiple cryptocurrencies, helping both individuals and businesses bypass the traditional bottlenecks of international banking.

For freelancers, SMEs, and multinational clients, this means faster liquidity, reduced foreign exchange costs, and simplified global operations. The demand for real-time financial services is growing rapidly—Juniper Research projects global real-time payments turnover to hit USD 58 trillion by 2028—and Black Banx is strategically positioned to capture a significant share of this market.

Crypto Integration as a Revenue Stream

Another key revenue driver is crypto integration. While many traditional institutions remain hesitant, Black Banx embraced digital assets early and has built infrastructure to support Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the Lightning Network. In Q2 2025, 20% of all transactions on the platform were crypto-based, reflecting strong customer appetite for hybrid banking services that bridge fiat and digital assets.

Revenue comes not only from transaction fees but also from value-added services like crypto-to-fiat conversion, staking yields (4–12% APY), and blockchain-enabled payments. For customers in markets with unstable currencies, these services act as a financial lifeline, further expanding the platform’s relevance.

AI-Powered Efficiency and Risk Management

Record revenues would be less impressive if costs ballooned at the same rate. But Black Banx has proven adept at balancing growth with efficiency. Its cost-to-income ratio improved to 63% in Q2, down from 69% a year earlier, thanks to heavy reliance on AI-powered automation.

AI now drives fraud detection, compliance, and customer onboarding—areas where traditional banks often struggle with cost inefficiencies. By automating these processes, Black Banx can process millions of transactions securely while maintaining profitability at scale. This level of efficiency is rare in fintech, where high growth often comes at the expense of margins.

Regional Expansion and Untapped Markets

Geography also plays a role in fueling revenues. Much of the Q2 growth came from Africa, South Asia, and Latin America—regions where demand for mobile-first banking continues to soar. In 2024 alone, Black Banx reported a 32% increase in SME clients from the Middle East and Africa, signaling the strength of its positioning in underserved markets.

By extending services to populations previously excluded from formal banking—migrant workers, rural communities, and small businesses—Black Banx taps into vast pools of latent demand. The strategy proves that financial inclusion and profitability are not mutually exclusive but mutually reinforcing.

Diversified Revenue Streams

Another factor behind Q2’s record revenues is Black Banx’s diversified business model. Income is not tied to a single service but spread across multiple streams, including:

Transaction fees from cross-border transfers and payments.
Crypto trading and exchange services.
Premium account features for high-net-worth clients.
Corporate services for SMEs and international businesses.

This diversification insulates the company against volatility in any single segment, creating stable revenue growth even in shifting market conditions.

Michael Gastauer’s Strategic Blueprint

Behind these results is Michael Gastauer’s long-term strategy: scale aggressively but with efficiency, innovation, and inclusion at the core. His vision has always been to create a borderless financial ecosystem, and Q2 2025’s performance is evidence that this vision is not only achievable but sustainable.

By balancing mass-market accessibility with premium features, and by blending fiat with digital assets, Gastauer has positioned Black Banx as a category-defining player in global finance.

The Road Ahead: Toward 100 Million Clients

Looking forward, the company’s goal of reaching 100 million customers by the end of 2025 will likely be the next catalyst for revenue growth. More customers mean more transactions, more data insights, and more opportunities to refine and expand its service offering.

If current momentum holds, the USD 4.3 billion quarterly revenue milestone could be just the beginning of an even larger growth story. The challenge will be ensuring systems scale securely while maintaining trust in an environment where privacy and compliance are paramount.

A Record That Signals More to Come

Black Banx’s Q2 2025 performance—USD 4.3 billion in revenue, USD 1.6 billion in pre-tax profit, 84 million clients worldwide, and a lean 63% cost-to-income ratio—is more than a financial milestone. It is a signal of how the future of banking is being rewritten by platforms that are borderless, crypto-inclusive, and data-driven.

What fueled this record-breaking quarter is not one innovation but a combination of strategies—scalable onboarding, real-time payments, crypto integration, AI efficiency, and expansion into underserved regions. Together, they form a model that doesn’t just challenge traditional banking but actively builds the foundation for global dominance.

For Black Banx, the road ahead is clear: the $4.3 billion quarter is not an endpoint but a launchpad for even greater scale and profitability.