A Colorado dental office administrator says he thought he was applying for a business loan connected to Goldman Sachs.Instead, Ron Bergloff says $4,000 disappeared from his business bank account and his bank told him there was n ot much he could do.Now, Denver7 Investigates is taking a closer look at the fast-growing world of online business funding, merchant cash advances and the electronic agreements that can leave business owners on the hook for large fees.Watch this investigation in the video below: Fast business funding: Big fees, few protections for merchant cash advancesIt was a complete shock. I literally couldn't believe it, Bergloff told Denver7 Investigates.Bergloff helps run a community dental office in Greeley. In April, he says he was looking for financing tied to a dental implant training course when he got a phone call from a company calling itself The Goldman Fund.They said that they were in New York, had financial ties to Goldman Sachs. TheGoldman Sachs is how he put it, Bergloff said.Denver7 Investigates found no connection between Goldman Sachs and the company involved in Bergloffs complaint. Goldman Financial told Denver7 it has no affiliation with Goldman Sachs. The company's compliance director said the Goldman Fund and Go Goldman are marketing brands of Goldman Financial.At first, Bergloff said the pitch sounded legitimate. He said the company first discussed investment opportunities before steering him toward what he believed was a traditional business loan.What we will do is we can get you a long-term, low-interest loan, Bergloff recalled being told.Bergloff said the company later asked him to validate his business bank account.He said he filled out paperwork and provided a voided business check as part of the process.Then something started to feel wrong, so he told them he had decided not to use Goldman for a loan.I said, I don't want anything to do with you guys. I'm all good, Bergloff said. I don't want anything from you. But documents reviewed by Denver7 Investigates show $4,000 was later withdrawn from Bergloffs account for what the company described as an underwriting fee.No one would authorize a $4,000 fee for a phone call, Bergloff said.Bergloff said he never received the loan he believed he was applying for and the loss hit at one of the worst possible times.Four thousand dollars is a lot of money, he said. That happened right at the same time we were trying to run payroll. It was this horrible, horrible situation.The company strongly disputed Bergloffs account. In multiple written statements to Denver7, Goldman Financial said Bergloff knowingly authorized the $4,000 fee through a DocuSign ACH agreement connected to what the company describes as a merchant cash advance.The company provided DocuSign audit records and copies of agreements it said Bergloff signed.Goldman Financial also told Denver7: It does not represent itself as affiliated with Goldman Sachs The underwriting fee was clearly disclosed and non-refundable The company follows applicable laws and does not believe it is required to hold lending licenses for the products it offers Bergloffs funding had already been approvedBut in a Better Business Bureau response tied to Bergloffs complaint, the company wrote Bergloff was in the process of getting funding.When Denver7 Investigates asked Bergloff about the companys claim that funding had already been approved, he responded: Where is it? Its really easy, super easy. I received zero. Nothing.As Denver7 Investigates dug deeper into the company behind the disputed $4,000 fee, more questions emerged.The Better Business Bureau of Southeast Florida confirmed it investigated Goldman Financial after receiving complaints from consumers.Yes, absolutely, BBB spokesperson Cinthya Lavin said. We identified a pattern.The BBB gives Goldman Financial an F rating and posted an alert after multiple consumers complained money had been taken from their accounts without authorization.The lack of information also shows for us that they don't have the appropriate licensing, at least in the state of Florida, to be able to provide these financial services, Lavin said.California regulators also told Denver7 Investigates they have no record of Goldman Financial being licensed there.The company is on the departments radar, a spokesperson for Californias Department of Financial Protection and Innovation wrote in an email to Denver7, while declining to discuss complaints citing confidentiality.Then, the story gets even more complicated.Bergloff says he thought he was applying for a traditional business loan.The paperwork he was later provided, however, described something different: A merchant cash advance.Merchant cash advances, sometimes called MCAs or revenue-based financing, are not traditional loans. Instead of lending money in the conventional sense, MCA companies typically provide upfront cash in exchange for a portion of future business revenue.Industry experts said those products often operate outside many traditional lending rules and licensing structures.There are no states that require merchant cash advance companies to be licensed, said Steve Denis, CEO of the Small Business Finance Association.Denis says the fast-growing industry has attracted legitimate financing companies, but also businesses operating with little oversight.There really is no barrier to entry, and that's a huge problem in the space, said Denis, who said a $4,000 non-refundable underwriting fee sounded a little excessive.Bergloff said his bank, Chase, initially flagged the disputed transaction but ultimately told him the money could not be recovered because it involved an ACH authorization tied to his account.Now, Bergloff said hes doing what he can. He filed complaints with the FBI and attorneys general, launched a website to warn other customers and decided to go public.Because I don't want anyone else to fall for it, he said.California regulators told Denver7 consumers should be wary of providing any banking information to strangers and unknown entities and warned pressure tactics are often a red flag.The FBI warned consumers and business owners to thoroughly research investment and funding opportunities, never rush into financial deals and avoid sending money to people they have never met in person.Experts also recommend carefully reviewing contracts, understanding exactly what type of financial product is being offered and reading the fine print before providing bank account information or electronic signatures. ...read more read less