Introduction
Are you in an emergency financial situation with your business?
Do you need a sudden injection of cash, but you’re unsure at where to start?
This guide will tell you everything you need to know about emergency business loans, including what they are and where you can find them at short notice.
Although it’s understandable that you might want to go with the first provider you see, it may not be your best option.
What’s in this guide?
Top 10 emergency business loan providers
1. Boost Capital
Type: Alternative Finance Provider
Loan amount: £3,000 – £500,000
Typical APR: 1.5% – 2.5% monthly APR
Loan term: 4 to 18 months
Boost Capital is a highly recommended alternative finance provider in the UK, with many customers giving this lender five stars on trusted websites such as Trustpilot.
They offer fast funding, with minimal paperwork, approval in 24 hours and access to your funds in around two days.
Representative: Borrow £10,000 for 12 months at 47.9% representative APR. Interest rate of 36.74% p.a. (fixed). Total amount payable is £12,100.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
2. Capify
Type: Alternative Finance Provider
Loan amount: £3,500 – £500,000
Typical APR: 67.89% APR
Loan term: 6 to 10 months
Capify is another highly rated lender, who has been around since 2008 and they have helped thousands of business owners to grow and sustain their business.
Focused on small to medium enterprises, they aim to give you a decision within 60 seconds and solutions tailored to your business.
Representative: Borrow £24,000 for 12 months at 67.89% representative APR. Total amount payable is £29,472.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
3. Funding Circle
Type: Peer-to-Peer Lender
Loan amount: £5,000 – £500,000
Typical APR: Rates start from 4.5% per year AER
Loan term: 6 months to 5 years
Funding Circle is one of the peer-to-peer lenders that have been sprouting up around the UK in the last few years.
With a peer-to-peer platform, the lenders are regular citizens that want to help their savings grow by investing in UK businesses.
For businesses, this means low AER and only a couple of extra fees.
Representative: Borrow £20,000 for 12 months with fixed monthly payments of £1,752 a month, with a completion fee of 2.5% and interest of around £526. Total amount payable is £21,026.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
4. Shawbrook Bank
Type: Bank
Loan amount: £250,000 to £25 million
Typical APR: 0% to 19.9% APR
Loan term: Bespoke repayments
Shawbrook Bank offers their business customers a range of services tailored to their companies, like asset finance, working capital solutions, the point of sale finance and structured finance, as well as commercial mortgages too.
This means that for startup businesses you could finance for the road ahead with equipment and salaries, or even established companies can benefit from more substantial amounts to help you fund expansions.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
5. Government Startup Loan
Type: Government Loan
Loan amount: £500 – £25,000
Interest: Fixed 6% interest p.a.
Loan term: 1 year to 5 years
Government loans are business loans that are funded by government-backed organisations, who usually offer either regional or national business loans depending on their location.
With this loan, in particular, it is aimed at startups less than 24 months old who could benefit from not only finance but mentoring, to help your business grow and thrive.
Representative: Borrow £20,000 for 12 months with fixed monthly payments of £1,721.33 a month, with interest of around £655.94. Total amount payable is £20,655.94.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
6. Spotcap
Type: Alternative Finance Provider
Loan amount: Up to £250,000
Interest: 22.80%, which includes both interest and fee.
Loan term: 1 month to 24 months
Spotcap is a highly regarded alternative finance provider, who since their launch in 2014, has raised £90 million globally, 500 active partners and over 1000 customers.
Although they are a relatively young provider, they have already become a fast favourite according to their five star Trustpilot rating.
Representative: If you borrow £100,000 over 12 months at a representative rate of 24.2% APR, with an interest rate of 1.40% fixed, you will pay 12 monthly instalments of £9,111 which would mean a total repayment of £109,332.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
7. iwoca
Type: Alternative Finance Provider
Loan amount: £1,000 – £150,000
APR: 49% representative APR
Loan term: 0 to 6 months
iwoca prides itself on providing their customers with fair decisions, lightning-fast applications, outstanding flexibility and service.
Thousands of companies have borrowed £500 million, and they could be an excellent fit for many different businesses regardless of size.
Representative: Borrow £10,000 for 12 months at 49% representative APR. Interest rate of 40% p.a. (fixed). Total amount repayable is £12,165. Actual rate may vary based on circumstances.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
8. Ezbob
Type: A lending platform for banks and financial institutions
Loan amount: £1,000 – £120,000
APR: 38.9% APR
Loan term: 1 to 12 months
Ezbob is bringing a change to the way that banks and other financial institutions lend to consumers and small to medium enterprises.
They act as a middleman between banks and customers, so they can offer the excellent rates that you’d typically find when looking to borrow from a bank, but their exceptional customer service.
Representative: Borrowing £50,000 over 12 months would mean you would be repaying £58,873. These payments would be £4,166 a month plus interest on your remaining balance.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
9. Fleximize
Type: Alternative Finance Provider
Loan amount: £5,000 to £500,000
APR: 46.8% APR
Loan term: 1 – 48 Months
Fleximize was named best business loans provider by the British Bank Awards in 2018.
They claim to allow your business to grow at the pace it needs to, by offering relatively long borrowing terms of up to four years, and up to half a million pounds.
This could be a perfect fit for companies looking to purchase their property or vehicles.
Representative: If you borrow £12,500 over 15 months at 46.8% APR and an annual interest rate of 39.0% (fixed), you will pay monthly instalments of £1,066.11. The total charge for credit will be £3,491.65; the total amount will equal £15,991.65.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 5 / 5
10. Danske Bank
Type: A lending platform for banks and financial institutions
Loan amount: No minimum or maximum
APR: Interest is calculated daily and applied monthly.
Loan term: 12 months
Danske Bank, as the name suggests, is a subsidiary of Danske Bank Group which originates from Denmark.
They can offer their customers a bridging loan, which doesn’t have a minimum or maximum amount and can be used for things such as constructing premises, renovations or letting you close a deal without having to wait for another transaction.
Repayment is usually made in a lump sum at the end of your term.
Company rating on Trustpilot: 4 / 5
This list of the top ten business loan providers mainly takes into consideration the companies customer reputation, how much your business can borrow and the interest your lender will charge you.
FAQ
What is a business loan?
It’s when you ask a lender like a peer-to-peer platform to loan you some money so you can pay for things like more employees.
There are usually several fees involved, including a certain amount of interest and sometimes arrangement fees.
Interest is when you have to pay back a little extra, as a sort of payment for borrowing that amount of money.
What is an emergency business loan?
For your business, an emergency business loan is emergency access to cash that can help your company get out of a tight spot, or help you fulfil an order.
This could help you to pay your employees, purchase things such as materials for your products or help you to pay your taxes for instance.
Plus, you can make manageable monthly repayments that are typically under two years in loan lengths, instead of other loans that might take years to pay back.
So while your repayment amounts might be high, you might be able to pay it off in a few months which will let your budget more manageable.
Where can I get an emergency business loan?
✔ Banks
✔ Government schemes
✔ Peer-to-Peer lender
✔ Alternative finance providers
What are the benefits of an emergency business loan?
- These types of loans are often more flexible.
- They are quicker to access.
- You can get a quick business loan from most providers.
- The interest rates are sometimes lower.
- An emergency financial boost can mean the difference between fulfilling a vital order or not.
Who is the best emergency business loan financer?
The best emergency business loan provider depends solely on your needs as a business.
For instance, some banks might offer business advice as well as loans which could help you to navigate out of a sticky situation, or you might want an alternative finance provider who could give you a loan within minutes.
If speed is something that is important to you in this scenario, and you process payments with PayPal, they offer working capital loans that they claim can be applied for in mere minutes, and you get your funds almost instantly.
This can save you essential time that could have been drawn out by applying for a bank loan, which can sometimes take hours to complete and days to process.
Are there any other options?
Short-term loans
Short-term loans allow you to borrow an amount of cash usually for a few months, rather than some loans which might enable you to borrow money for a lot longer.
For emergencies, you should only borrow the amount that you need to keep going, rather than borrowing too much and end up putting yourself in more debt.
Why would an emergency business loan be best for me?
You might need an emergency business loan because you don’t have enough cash to carry out day-to-day tasks such as paying salaries, even though you are in profit.
It depends entirely on your situation, which dictates how much of a loan you need, where you get it from and your repayment terms.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are many options available to you when you need an emergency business loan, but if you are still stuck when it comes to finances, there is more.
Take a look at the ExpertSure guides to find out more about loans and your different lending options, or fill out the form at the top of the page to compare quotes.
