Alternative funders launch SME portal

Seven alternative finance lenders have teamed up to launch a new one-stop-shop web portal.

Some of the UK’s leading alternative business funders have launched www.alternativebusinessfunding.co.uk, which is designed to signpost SMEs into non-bank funding.

The new web portal launched this week and aims to simplify business owners' search for finance.

Initial funding associates - CrowdCube, Funding Circle, Market Invoice, Platform Black, Seedrs, Zopa and Pensionledfunding.com - collectively cover over 70 per cent of the alternative business funding market in crowdfunding, invoice trading, peer-to-peer and pension-led funding.

The firms have provided more than £580 million to SMEs to date, supporting around 80,000 jobs.

In addition, each organisation will “recycle” their rejected applicants to the site to access other potential non-bank funding sources. It also provides a platform for major banks to redirect customers which don’t meet their criteria.

In a unique collaboration; the funders aim to make borrowing easier for the country’s SMEs – whilst aiding the main banks to support rejected applicants.

With 95 per cent of SME funding still originating from banks, the organisation believes that there needs to be greater, and more relevant, signposting of alternative forms of finance for companies. With banks at risk when it comes to referring companies to other forms of finance, the platform will allow funders to share and recycle applications depending upon what sort of finance suits.

Bridging & Commercial — https://bridgingandcommercial.co.uk/alternative-funders-launch-sme-portal