What lenders typically weigh
For this situation, UK SME lenders typically weigh a small set of signals more heavily than others. The strength of each lever affects which lenders will look at the case and what terms you might expect:
- Filed accounts at Companies House
- Most lenders look at the most recent filed accounts plus management accounts since year-end. Late or unfiled accounts are a meaningful blocker.
- Director personal credit
- Even for limited companies, almost all SME lenders run a director credit check. A clean file widens options significantly.
- Trading history and revenue
- Standard signals — 12+ months of trading, consistent monthly revenue, no significant decline trend. Most product ranges open up at this threshold.
- Existing debt and gearing
- Lenders look at existing finance commitments and the debt-to-EBITDA picture. Heavily leveraged businesses face affordability questions.
- Sector
- Most sectors are well-served by UK SME lending. A handful (adult, gambling, regulated specialist) are restricted at some lenders.
Finance types that usually fit this situation
Unsecured Business Loan
Term loan or credit line repaid through fixed instalments.
Asset Finance
Finance to buy/refinance equipment, vehicles or machinery.
Invoice Finance
Funding advanced against unpaid B2B invoices.
Merchant Cash Advance
Cash advance repaid as a share of card/POS/platform sales.
Commercial Mortgage
Long-term commercial property purchase/refinance funding.
UK lenders that often look at this situation
The lenders below publish criteria consistent with this situation. Final approval is always subject to lender underwriting.
iwoca
Business loan / credit line
- Amount
- £1k–£1m
- Speed
- Instant/same-day for many
- Security / PG
- Unsecured positioning
- Data confidence
- High
Funding Circle
Business loan
- Amount
- £10k–£750k
- Speed
- Decision as fast as 1h; funds ~48h
- Security / PG
- PG required
- Data confidence
- High
Fleximize
Business loan
- Amount
- £10k–£1m
- Speed
- Decision as fast as 24h
- Security / PG
- Secured and unsecured
- Data confidence
- Medium
Lombard
Asset finance / HP
- Amount
- £25k+
- Speed
- Not disclosed
- Security / PG
- Security/guarantees may be required
- Data confidence
- Medium
Novuna Business Finance
Asset finance
- Amount
- Not disclosed
- Speed
- Not disclosed
- Security / PG
- Asset-backed
- Data confidence
- High
Bibby
Factoring / invoice discounting
- Amount
- Not disclosed
- Speed
- Not disclosed
- Security / PG
- Invoice-backed
- Data confidence
- Medium
Allica Bank
Asset finance
- Amount
- £25k–£2.5m
- Speed
- Not disclosed
- Security / PG
- Asset-backed; up to 100% advance
- Data confidence
- High
If you can't qualify yet
If limited company applications aren't returning offers, the most common gaps are short trading history, late accounts, director credit issues or existing-debt affordability. File outstanding accounts at Companies House, prepare a clean year-end set, and address any director CCJs. Run 6 clean months of bank-statement activity before reapplying. Avoid stacking applications across multiple unsecured lenders in a short window because declines stack on the file. Consider whether a different product fits better — invoice finance against unpaid B2B invoices, asset finance against equipment, or MCA against card sales — instead of broadening the unsecured search.
Frequently asked questions
- Do limited companies have more finance options than sole traders?
- Generally yes, especially for larger amounts. Limited companies access higher unsecured limits, broader invoice finance appetite and more commercial mortgage lenders. The corporate credit file and clear asset separation help underwriting.
- What accounts do limited company lenders ask for?
- Most recent filed accounts at Companies House plus year-to-date management accounts. Some digital lenders accept bank-statement-led underwriting and pull figures via open banking, reducing the manual paperwork.
- Will the lender ask for a director personal guarantee?
- Almost always for SME finance up to a few hundred thousand pounds. Some products (revenue-based finance, specific platform-native MCAs) market as no-PG under certain facility sizes — read carefully.
- Can a dormant or newly-active company get finance?
- Newly-active companies face the same short-trading-history challenges as sole traders — platform-native MCA and asset finance with strong director credit are usually the accessible routes. Most other products want 12+ months.
- How do existing director loans affect business finance?
- Director loans on the balance sheet are usually fine and don't typically block applications. Heavily negative director loan accounts (DLA overdrawn) are sometimes a question in underwriting because of tax and affordability implications.