A lender backed by a US investment giant is facing £1 million worth of completions off the back of the NACFB expo in Birmingham - in line with its launch into the UK market.

Boost Capital, which launched into the UK market just two months ago, is aiming to tackle the SME funding gap via an $82 million (£54.35 million) fund from US investment giant, Wells Fargo Capital Finance, part of Wells Fargo & Company.

Boost aims to capitalise on what it believes is a stagnant market, with 34 per cent of SMEs being turned down credit on first application, and a further 34 per cent planning to use external funding to grow their businesses over the next year.

Exhibiting at the recent NACFB Commercial Expo in Birmingham, the company, which operates under its parent company – Business Financial Services, managed to line up £1 million worth of financing, off just five enquiries from the day.

The firm is offering unsecured loans of £3,000 to £500,000, with completions processed in as little as five to ten working days and initial approval in just 24 hours.

Speaking about the Expo, David Abbott, Managing Director of Boost Capital, said: “We’ve had some excellent feedback from finance brokers during the NACFB Expo about our unsecured loans for SMEs and as a result we’re already looking to fund £1 million to small businesses just from this.”

Speaking on the overall operation in the UK, Marc Glazer, CEO of Boost Capital, said: “So many of the UK’s SMEs are struggling to get funding via traditional lenders. Despite government proposals intended to help, we have yet to see any significant impact. We believe it is essential that SMEs with growth potential have access to financing - without a prolonged, difficult process. That’s why our goal is to provide capital in as few as five business days.

“Drawing on over ten years’ experience with over 12,000 SMEs in the US, we’ve offered our services here on a trial basis since last summer. Our UK customers, many of which are businesses on Britain’s high streets, all share a common goal—growth—and a common challenge—securing capital. Having secured a significant credit line, we are excited about getting funding out to SMEs across the UK.”