UK-wide business lender Merchant Money (Momenta Finance) has been shortlisted in the Unsecured Lender of The Year category of the prestigious NACFB Patron Awards.
MM was chosen based on the previous 12 months success in providing unsecured funding facilities through its broker network to UK SME’s. These facilities were in the form of RLS loans, backed by the British Business Bank and non-Government backed traditional loans. MM also successfully raised an additional £150 million funding line provided by a major UK clearing bank and Shawbrook, in support of lending. This was their largest single fund raise to date. As a net result, MM grew its combined unsecured loan book more than 35%.
Several factors make this achievement remarkable:
MM being an SME itself.
Being accredited by the British Business Bank for this scheme, following their partnership under the CBILS scheme in 2020.
MM maintained average turnaround times at 24/48hrs, despite receiving a high volume of applications.
MM made a commitment to lend right up until the RLS deadline. Many other lenders had stopped lending, giving SMEs access to vital funds
MM maintained a high (4.7) Trust Pilot score from customers
Luke Jooste, CEO of MM comments ‘I am delighted that we have been shortlisted for this important industry award and I am incredibly proud of our team that continues to keep UK SMEs at its heart. We will once again be looking for the support of our brokers when voting opens. I look forward to meeting the other deserving finalists on the night.’
This year there were over 230 applications from more than 70 organisations across 15 categories. The awards will take place on Thursday 24th November 2022 at the Westminster Park Plaza.
Momenta Finance, formerly Merchant Money, is a leading provider of alternative finance solutions headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Established in 2013, Momenta Finance offers a panorama of lending options, including unsecured and secured business finance, bridging loans and business cash advances. The company’s commitment to transparency, tailored and credible funding has made it a trusted partner for businesses seeking financial support. Momenta Finance is accredited by the British Business Bank and upholds the highest industry standards.
UK-wide specialist finance provider Momenta Finance has made significant changes to improve their unsecured and secured business loans, as it looks to further support UK SMEs during an increasingly difficult trading period. The new product includes an increased maximum loan amount and longer loan term.
Momenta Finance’s CEO, Luke Jooste commented ‘UK SMEs continue to face an extremely difficult trading environment. We aim to support all small business owners as much as possible, by providing transparent and flexible lending products. Almost half of UK SMEs plan to take out some form of finance this year, be that for survival or growth. Yet, despite this, there are fewer lenders in our direct space and there is an overall reduced credit appetite across the market.’
Danny Girnun, Managing Director at Momenta Finance added ‘We are excited to continue our support through our improved products, for the benefit of our introducers and customers alike.’
The changes made to the improved unsecured and secured business loan product can be summarised as:
Momenta Finance, formerly Merchant Money, is a leading provider of alternative finance solutions headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Established in 2013, Momenta Finance offers a panorama of lending options, including unsecured and secured business finance, bridging loans, and business cash advances. The company’s commitment to transparency, tailored approaches, and credible funding has made it a trusted partner for businesses seeking financial support. Momenta Finance is accredited by the British Business Bank and upholds the highest industry standards.
Bolstering Lending Books and Position in Evolving SME Market
Momenta Finance is delighted to announce £115m of additional funding from Barclays Bank PLC and new partner Quilam Capital.
The funding will be used to grow its lending books across its secured and unsecured products. This will add to its existing senior funding lines.
Since 2013, Momenta Finance has been steadfastly providing secured and unsecured business loans to SMEs on a UK-wide basis. The business, which secured British Business Bank accreditation for CBILS & RLS lending respectively, added bridging and secured loans to its offering in 2020. An area in which it has achieved good success to date.
Challenging market conditions have seen a continued retrenchment of traditional high street lenders and alternative funders in the SME lending space. Momenta Finance is now well positioned to grow in this market.
Jonathan Stern, Co-Founder and Chief Financial Officer of Momenta Finance, commented:
“We are extremely proud to have secured such significant funding lines from two prestigious partners in difficult market conditions. The funding package consists of a combination of senior and junior capital. Allowing for an even more compelling product offering. We have already funded our first deals using this capacity and the market reaction to our improved products has been extremely positive”.
Matt Glew, Director at Quilam Capital stated:
“We are very happy to be supporting Momenta Finance into what we expect to be a very exciting next stage of its journey. Despite the current headwinds, there remains significant market opportunity in the SME space. Which the business is now in a prime position to fully capitalise on. We have been very impressed by the ambitions of the management team and are looking forward to seeing our capital deployed in order to help achieve their goals.”
Sean White, MD of Securitised Products at Barclays, commented:
“We are delighted to support Momenta Finance with a new senior warehouse facility that will assist in funding the business’s growth plans in the UK SME sector. Our strategy in the Corporate and Investment Bank is grounded in delivering for clients.”
Behind the scenes, Momenta Finance has been working hard to ensure the business is in the best shape possible to deploy this additional capital. This involved the recruitment of fifteen additional members of staff across a broad range of functions. Introducing open banking and launching a new online broker portal.
Luke Jooste, CEO of Momenta Finance commented:
“Despite the likelihood of a tough trading environment during 2023, our goal remains to support the UK SME sector. Alongside our supportive founding shareholders, this new funding will fuel the next phase in Momenta Finances growth aspirations. We are incredibly excited to be partnering with Quilam who bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise in the specialist lending space”.
About Momenta Finance
Momenta Finance, formerly Merchant Money, is a leading provider of alternative finance solutions headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Established in 2013, Momenta Finance offers a panorama of lending options, including unsecured and secured business finance, bridging loans, and business cash advances. The company’s commitment to transparency, tailored credible funding has made it a trusted partner for businesses seeking financial support. Momenta Finance is accredited by the British Business Bank and upholds the highest industry standards.
We are proud to report exceptional performance in Q1 of this year, with origination growth up significantly compared to 2022. This achievement was made possible by the successful improvements made to our unsecured and secured business loans, which were as a result of the £115m funding raised from Quilam Capital and Barclays Bank PLC. In addition, we expanded our business development team and welcomed Jake Bebbingtonand Alex Forster, who are supporting Tom Shave, our Sales Director.
First Quarter Achievements in Multiple Sectors and Acclaim from Brokers
We are delighted to see our first quarter success spread across a wide range of sectors. This includes care homes, automotive, dental, manufacturing, logistics, and event organisers across the UK. This accomplishment is further strengthened by the feedback from our broker community. They highlight the 5-year term, competitive pricing, and account management as the particular strengths of our offering.
Luke Jooste, our CEO, remarked, ‘We expected the additional funding and product improvements to be well received, but the tremendous feedback from our broker community has surpassed our expectations. As we move into Q2, we’re eager to build on this momentum. We attribute this achievement to the unwavering commitment of our team to provide innovative financial solutions to UK’s SMEs. We also extend our heartfelt gratitude to our valued broker partners. Their invaluable support and feedback played a key role in our phenomenal growth.’
Looking ahead, we plan to continue growing our loan book by fully utilising our existing funding lines. Despite the challenging macroeconomic environment for UK SMEs, we remain committed to supporting them to the fullest extent possible. Simultaneously, we aim to strengthen our relationships with our network of business introducers.
If you’re interested in learning more about our business loan products or joining our broker panel, please email broker@momentafinance.co.uk. We look forward to continuing to work with our broker community to empower UK SMEs with the financing solutions they need to thrive.
About Momenta Finance
Momenta Finance, formerly Merchant Money, is a leading provider of alternative finance solutions headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Established in 2013, Momenta Finance offers a panorama of lending options, including unsecured and secured business finance, bridging loans, and business cash advances. The company’s commitment to transparency, tailored credible funding has made it a trusted partner for businesses seeking financial support. Momenta Finance is accredited by the British Business Bank and upholds the highest industry standards.
Momenta Finance offered Plexus Finance’s client, a growing recruitment business, a highly competitive unsecured loan of £150,000 over 3 years.
Plexus Finance is a commercial finance and debt advisory firm. They specialise in assisting small and medium-sized enterprises in the UK with funding for assets, working capital and commercial property. With over ten years of experience in finance, Ricky Shafier, the founder and managing director of Plexus Finance, has witnessed the significance of finding the right funding solution. He understands the importance of tailoring it to meet the unique needs of each business.
His client was a growing recruitment business that had recently invested in a new office in Manchester. The move had depleted their cash reserves, and they needed additional funding to continue expanding their operations. The client’s primary goal was to hire new staff. Ensuring they had sufficient cash on hand for timely and strategic hiring opportunities.
Ricky had been working with Momenta Finance for around three years and was familiar with the company’s competitive rates and flexible structure. After reviewing the client’s needs, he carefully selected the lenders he believed would be the best match. Providing the most suitable and comprehensive facility for the client. The Momenta Finance offer of an unsecured loan of £150,000 over 3 years was highly competitive, and the client decided to proceed.
Ricky used the Momenta Finance introducer portal to submit the application, which he found to be straightforward and easy to use. The application process was efficient and streamlined, and the client was able to receive the funding they needed quickly. Working with Momenta Finance was a positive experience for Plexus Finance. Ricky highly recommends Momenta Finance to other SMEs seeking business finance.
About Momenta Finance
Momenta Finance, formerly Merchant Money, is a leading provider of alternative finance solutions headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Established in 2013, Momenta Finance offers a panorama of lending options, including unsecured and secured business finance, bridging loans, and business cash advances. The company’s commitment to transparency, tailored and credible funding has made it a trusted partner for businesses seeking financial support. Momenta Finance is accredited by the British Business Bank and upholds the highest industry standards.
Momenta Finance, formerly Merchant Money, a UK-based alternative finance provider, recently worked with Chris Morris, the co-founder of NGI Finance Ltd. to provide a flexible secured loan for a borrower based in Oxford. NGI Finance Ltd. is a finance broker with their head office located in the heart of Oxfordshire. NGI Finance Ltd. positions itself effectively to serve individuals and businesses not only in the Thames Valley but also across the entire UK
The client needed a bridging loan to release equity from a completed development scheme in order to secure their next development project. They required funding quickly, Momenta Finance were able to provide the borrower with funding within just eight days. The amount released to the borrower was £500,000, secured by a 1st legal charge. There were no early repayment or exit fees, providing the client with more flexibility.
Securing Rapid Funding for Oxford-based Borrower
Chris worked closely with Tom Shave and the Momenta Finance underwriting team, who took the time to understand the client’s requirements and tailor a solution that met their needs. The underwriting team was thorough in their analysis, ensuring a comprehensive assessment. They impressively provided a decision within 24 hours of receiving all the required documentation. This efficient and personalised service helped to ensure that the deal was funded within just eight days.
The flexible secured loan was provided with favourable terms that allowed the client more flexibility in repayment. Chris Morris from NGI Finance Ltd. was pleased with the outcome, stating:
“Momenta Finance were able to provide a fast and flexible solution to my client’s funding needs. The ability to provide funding in just eight days was a key factor in securing this deal. The team at Momenta Finance impressed me with their professionalism and expertise”.
Momenta Finance’s ability to provide fast and flexible funding solutions was instrumental in allowing the client to access the funding they needed. This enabled them to move forward with their next scheme.
The quick turnaround time provided by Momenta Finance was a key factor in securing this deal. It demonstrated the company’s commitment to providing fast and flexible funding solutions.
