Government-backed lending schemes help ThinCats report record year

The alternative lender, says it has lent a record £318m to SMEs last year, a nine per cent uplift on the previous year, helped by lending under the CBILS and RLS schemes.

ThinCats, the alternative lender, says it lent a record £318m to SMEs last year, a nine per cent uplift on the previous year.

ThinCats, which provides leading of between £1m and £15m to SMEs, said the record lending was provided to existing and new borrowers.

The £318m lending was made up of lending through the government-supported CBILS and RLS schemes as well as business usual leading, ThinCats said.

This compares to £289m it lent the year previous.

Further highlights last year, said the lender, was over £200m lent across its healthcare and leisure products.

Alternative lenders like ThinCats have provided billions of pounds to UK’s SMEs through government-backed loan schemes through the pandemic.

Last year, it announced that it had provided more than £1bn in lending to UK businesses thanks to record lending in 2020.

It hopes to lend out much more, following a £160m strategic investment from Wafra Capital Partners.

The alternative lender started its life as a peer-to-peer lender, having launched in 2011.

Since its launch, it has made inroads into the alternative lending sector and was acquired by ESF Capital in December 2015.

In the past three years or so, its business has further evolved following the shutting of its retail platform and the hiring of ex Lehman Brothers securitisation chief Amany Attia as its CEO.

Attia said: “As Covid restrictions lifted and business confidence strengthened during 2021, borrower demand switched from the short-term liquidity needs of 2020 to funding strategic growth plans, both organic and through acquisitions. 

"Using a combination of the CBILS and RLS government-backed schemes and business as usual lending, we were delighted to provide a record amount of funding to existing and new borrowers.

“The economic outlook remains uncertain given the emergence of the Omicron variant of Covid on top of already rising energy and input costs, ongoing supply chain disruption and staff shortages. 

“It is unclear how long these challenges may persist, which is why businesses continue to need access to flexible funding solutions.“