Praetura secures second securitisation financing to stem fall in funding for UK SMEs

The Barclays facility enhances Praetura’s ability to meet rising demand for alternative lending, with the business expecting to support over 1,000 additional SMEs each year.

This comes as research from Praetura finds almost three-fifths (59%) of UK businesses say access to capital has decreased in the last five years, and that 43% report that it is one of the biggest challenges they face.

In addition, figures from the British Business Bank’s Small Business Finance Markets Report, found over a third (36%) of small business loan applications were unsuccessful in 2022.

The funding also makes Praetura the only specialist finance company in the UK to have two separate securitisation facilities in place for both sales finance and asset finance from two major institutional banks, following its asset finance securitisation facility of £160m from NatWest.

The news comes off the back of sustained growth for the Praetura Lending Division, with the group trebling its loan book – the amount it has lent to the 4,500 businesses it’s currently supporting – to £400m over the last three years.

To meet the rising demand for SME finance, spanning asset refinancing to invoice discounting, Praetura Lending has also expanded its team size, employing over 150 people across its offices in Manchester, Wilmslow, Cheshire, Blackburn and Milton Keynes.

The Praetura Lending Division, which was founded in 2013, comprises Praetura Asset Finance, Praetura Commercial Finance, Kingsway Finance and Zodeq.

Peadar O’Reilly, Praetura Lending Division CEO, said: “The Praetura team is delighted to partner with Barclays on this new facility and help more SMEs get the funding they need to succeed. By working with forward thinking institutions, such as Barclays, we are able bring down the barriers to capital for thousands of UK businesses.

“Delivering this facility was a real collaboration between our treasury team, management and advisors Stuart Mogg & Jenna Picken. It would also not have been possible without the functionality and reporting capability of our proprietary technology platform Praeview.”

Gordon Beck, European Head of Corporate & Sustainable Securitisation at Barclays, said: “We are pleased to support Praetura with this sales finance securitisation facility which emphasises Barclays commitment to supporting thriving SME businesses in our UK home market.”