Small restaurants struggling to secure traditional loans may soon find relief directly inside the Uber Eats app.
Fintech firm Pipe has struck a partnership with Uber Eats to make capital more accessible for thousands of restaurants across the U.S., CNBC has learned. Beginning this week, eligible restaurants using the Uber Eats Manager dashboard will see pre-approved funding offers tailored to their revenue and cash flow, powered by Pipe’s embedded financing technology.
No Credit Checks, No Hassle
Unlike traditional bank loans that require credit checks, FICO scores, or personal guarantees, Pipe’s process skips the usual hurdles. Instead, the company uses AI to analyze six months of anonymous credit card transaction history provided by Uber. With that data, Pipe calculates how much capital each restaurant can access — with 98% of applications approved and funds often arriving within 24 hours.
“The No. 1 pain point for small businesses is access to capital, and in the restaurant space, it’s even more acute,” said Pipe CEO Luke Voiles. “This is about helping an immigrant owner with no FICO score get financing for the first time, maybe open a second location, and double their business.”
Flexible Funding Built for Restaurants
Unlike fixed-term loans, Pipe’s model allows repayment to adjust with revenue flow. That means when business is slower, restaurants won’t be squeezed by rigid monthly payments. “We’ve seen businesses grow 12% month over month with this kind of flexible access to capital,” Voiles noted.
Why Uber Chose Pipe
Karl Hebert, Uber’s vice president of global commerce and financial services, said Pipe’s small-business-friendly approach made the company an ideal partner.
“Uber is focused on helping restaurant partners be successful,” Hebert explained. “This integration meets restaurant owners where they already are — in the Uber Eats Manager app.”
Uber has experimented with financial support for its restaurant partners before. In 2022, the company teamed up with Visa to provide $1 million in grants to restaurants affected by the pandemic and natural disasters. But this new partnership goes further by embedding capital access directly into the tools restaurants use every day.
A Seamless Future for Small Business Financing
Voiles said the goal is to make the process so intuitive that restaurant owners don’t even realize a third party is involved. “It’s an alignment of wanting to help these small businesses succeed and building something seamless enough to make that happen,” he said.
With Pipe now valued at $2 billion, this partnership could mark a pivotal moment for the fintech — and for thousands of small restaurants eager to grow without being weighed down by traditional lending barriers.
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