British Business Investments is providing Praetura Group’s Kingsway Finance with a £10m block discounting funding facility.
The finance provider will use British Business Investment’s capital to offer more loans to UK SMEs. It issues SMEs with loans from £5,000 up to £25m.
Peadar O’Reilly, CEO of Praetura Group’s lending division, said: “SMEs need funding on the right terms and at the right time, delivered by lenders who will ensure the needs of each individual business are prioritised.”
In 2022 the lending division had over £330m in loans on its balance sheet, according to Praetura Group.
Praetura Group contains Praetura Ventures, which is an active venture capital firm in the North West of England. Its recent investments include train ticket app Seatfrog, airport management platform AeroCloud and Re:course AI.
“This £10m block discounting agreement with Kingsway Finance supports British Business Investments’ mission to increase the diversity and supply of finance for smaller businesses in the UK,” said Judith Hartley, CEO of British Business Investments.
“Independent operators like Kingsway Finance help diversify the UK’s smaller business finance markets and provide more choice for businesses.”
In April, British Business Investments allocated £20m to venture capital firm Foresight Group for its North East fund to invest in SMEs.