Start Up Loans Company
Panel government-backed lender we route to for pre-revenue founders, sub-12-month traders and pre-incorporation applicants who do not fit any commercial lender on the panel. Run by British Business Bank through delivery partners. The loan is to the founder personally rather than the company, which means it works for pre-incorporation cases that no commercial lender will touch. Fixed 6% APR is the cheapest money on the panel for this applicant profile.
Quick routing verdict
- Product: Government-backed unsecured personal loan to fund a UK start-up.
- Ticket band: £500 to £25k per founder (max £100k per business).
- Decision time: 4 to 8 weeks.
- Pricing: Fixed 6% APR.
- FCA-authorised.
At a glance
- Legal entity
- The Start-Up Loans Company
- Companies House
- 08117656
- Founded
- 2012
- Product
- Government-backed unsecured personal loan to fund a UK start-up
- Ticket range
- £500 to £25k per founder (max £100k per business)
- Decision time
- 4 to 8 weeks
- Ltd-only
- Lender accepts other structures, FundBiz routing is Ltd-only
- Last reviewed
- 2026-06-12
Why we route here
- Open to pre-revenue and pre-incorporation founders that every commercial lender on the panel declines.
- Fixed 6% APR is materially cheaper than any post-decline or MCA route for the same applicant profile.
- Up to £25k per founder and £100k per business, which is enough to clear a typical first-12-months cash gap.
- Government-backed via British Business Bank, useful for founders who want a recognised institutional lender.
When we route elsewhere
- 4 to 8 week decision window is materially slower than fintech alternatives, so cash-this-month applicants need a different route.
- Loan is to the founder personally rather than the company, which the matcher flags so the applicant understands the personal-credit exposure.
- Mentorship and business-plan engagement requirement adds workload for applicants who just want money fast.
- Above £25k per founder the applicant has to either bring co-founders into the application or route to a commercial lender like iwoca or Capify.
Best fit applicants
- Pre-revenue founders that no commercial lender will engage with
- Sub-12-month trading Ltds where iwoca and Capify will not stretch
- Founders who want the cheapest money for the startup-stage profile and can wait 4 to 8 weeks
Where Start Up Loans Company is the wrong fit
- Speed-critical files needing cash this week, route to iwoca, Capify or YouLend
- Established Ltds with 12+ months trading, route to iwoca or Funding Circle for cheaper commercial money at speed
- Tickets above £25k per founder where co-founders are not available, route to Funding Circle or Capify
If declined by Start Up Loans Company
If your application to Start Up Loans Company is declined, the FundBiz post-decline matcher routes by decline reason. Common alternatives in our panel are listed in the "When we route elsewhere" section above. See also our Start Up Loans Company decline runbook for sector-specific routing detail, and our side-by-side guide to Start Up Loans Company alternatives for the closest UK specialty finance providers.
Other panel lenders
- 365 Business Finance, Merchant cash advance
- Aldermore, Asset finance, invoice finance, commercial mortgages
- Allica Bank, SME term loan + commercial mortgage
- Bizcap, Specialist post-decline / fast cash
Editorial reviews
For independent editorial reviews of Start Up Loans Company and the wider UK SMB lending market, see our sister site BestBusinessLoans.
Run the matcher
Tell us your turnover, sector and ticket size. We score against Start Up Loans Company and the wider FundBiz panel, then surface the lenders most likely to approve. Limited companies, LLPs and partnerships of 4+ only.
Open matcher →Last reviewed: 2026-06-12. By Oliver Mackman.