Alternative lenders accredited for recovery loan scheme
A number of alternative lenders have been accredited for the recovery loan scheme (RLS), including a couple of peer-to-peer lending platforms.
The scheme, which launched on 6 April to replace previous state-backed Covid lending programmes including the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS), will reach its five-month anniversary on Monday.
The RLS, which has a £10m maximum limit per business or £30m per group, aims to support small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have a viable business proposition and were hit by the Covid-19 crisis.
Here Peer2Peer Finance News lists some of the alternative lenders accredited to the scheme.
Funding Circle
How could we not start with the P2P platforms?
Funding Circle became the first P2P lender accredited under the scheme in May. It has been offering loans through the scheme alongside its existing commercial loan product.
Its RLS loans range from £25,001 to £350,000, with terms from two to six years. They offer fixed interest rates starting at 8.6 per cent and capped at 12.1 per cent, without any additional early repayment fees.
Funding Circle had previously participated in CBILS and the bounce back loan scheme.
Assetz Capital
Assetz Capital became the second P2P platform to be accredited to the scheme in July, having previously participated in CBILS.
Under RLS, the platform is providing development finance from £1m to £10m at rates starting at 6.99 per cent per annum and commercial mortgages from £250,000 to £10m at rates starting from 5.99 per cent per annum.
ThinCats
The British Business Bank (BBB) accredited the alternative lender, which exited the P2P space in favour of institutional funding in 2019, to the RLS in July.
The lender, which participated in two of the government’s previous loan schemes, achieved record lending volumes of £289m in 2020.
ThinCats announced a £160m investment from Kuwait-backed Wafra Capital Partners in June which will help it lend up to £2bn to SMEs over the coming years.
Starling Bank
Starling Bank was accredited to the RLS at the start of June.
The challenger bank previously said that it had funded more than £358m of loans under CBILS and over £1bn in bounce back loans.
It deployed the majority of its CBILS lending to small businesses via Funding Circle and will now provide term loans of between £25,001 and £250,000 to SMEs under the RLS.
Enterprise Answers
The BBB also accredited alternative lender Enterprise Answers to RLS in June.
The not-for-profit lender is delivering loans from £25,001 to £100,000 via the scheme to support the growth and recovery of businesses in the North of England that have been impacted by the Covid crisis.
After deploying its highest ever volume of lending during 2020/21 through CBILS, Lancashire, Cumbria and Yorkshire Dales based businesses affected by the pandemic can apply for an RLS loan from the lender on its website.
Finance for Enterprise
In August, the Northern England-focused alternative lender was approved for the RLS.
Finance for Enterprise had delivered more than £15m to businesses over the past 12 months, boosted by its participation in CBILS. It has now been offering RLS loans worth between £25,001 and £250,000 to businesses across Yorkshire, the Humber and the North Midlands.