Funding Circle
Corporate brand
UnclaimedA financial technology company providing lending and financial products to small and medium-sized businesses.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Funding Circle is a British financial technology company focused on financing small and medium-sized enterprises. It was established in 2010 by Samir Desai, James Meekings and Andrew Mullinger after the founders identified a financing gap created by banks' reduced lending to smaller businesses during and after the global financial crisis. The business initially operated as a peer-to-peer lending marketplace: businesses applied for loans through the platform, while individual and institutional investors supplied capital and earned returns from loan repayments. The company grew by combining digital credit assessment, online loan applications and marketplace funding. Its early development was supported by venture investors, and in 2012 the UK government used the platform to provide funding to small businesses. Funding Circle expanded internationally during the middle of the 2010s, entering the United States and later gaining access to Germany, Spain and the Netherlands through its 2015 acquisition of Zencap. At its peak, the company operated across several national markets and connected business borrowers with a broad pool of investors and funding partners. Funding Circle became a publicly traded company on the London Stock Exchange in September 2018. The initial public offering raised approximately £300 million and valued the company at about £1.5 billion at the time of admission. Its shares subsequently experienced a substantial first-day decline, and the company later faced the same pressures affecting many alternative-lending businesses: slower growth, rising credit losses, uncertainty around Brexit and the wider economy, and concerns about liquidity in secondary markets for peer-to-peer loans. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified those challenges. Funding Circle temporarily suspended its secondary market for loan parts in April 2020, citing exceptional market uncertainty. In March 2022, it announced that it would permanently leave the peer-to-peer lending model and move to a fully institutional funding structure. Under that model, banks, asset managers and other professional capital providers fund loans originated through Funding Circle's technology and underwriting platform. Funding Circle subsequently narrowed its geographic footprint. In July 2024 it sold its US operations to iBusiness Funding, leaving the United Kingdom as its principal operating market. The company has repositioned itself as a digital commercial lender and financial-services provider for UK SMEs, offering business loans, revolving or flexible credit, payment products and a business credit card. FlexiPay, introduced in 2021, is designed to help businesses pay suppliers and manage cash flow with repayment periods ranging from one to twelve months. In September 2024 the company launched the Cashback Business Credit Card, which provides business spending credit and cashback subject to the product's terms. Funding Circle remains regulated by the UK's Financial Conduct Authority. Lisa Jacobs, who joined the company in 2012 and became chief executive in 2022, has led the business during its transition from a cross-border peer-to-peer marketplace to an institutionally funded UK SME lender. Co-founder Samir Desai left the board in October 2024, marking the departure of the last original founder from the company's governing body. The company continues to emphasize speed, digital access and specialist underwriting for smaller businesses that may not receive an efficient service from traditional bank channels.
History
Funding Circle's origins lie in discussions among Samir Desai, James Meekings and Andrew Mullinger during the aftermath of the 2007–09 financial crisis. The founders believed that smaller companies were being underserved as banks tightened credit standards and reduced lending. After leaving their previous jobs in 2009, they developed an online marketplace that would allow SMEs to seek loans while investors supplied the capital. The platform launched in August 2010 as a peer-to-peer lending business. Its proposition combined online applications with data-driven underwriting and a marketplace mechanism intended to make business finance more accessible and efficient. Early growth included public-sector participation: in 2012 the British government used the platform to lend £20 million to small businesses. By October 2013, the platform had facilitated approximately £160 million of loans. Funding Circle raised a major venture round in 2013 led by Accel Partners, with Ribbit Capital, Union Square Ventures and Index Ventures also participating. The financing helped fund entry into the United States and established the company as one of the more prominent alternative lenders serving small businesses. International expansion continued in 2015, when Funding Circle acquired Zencap. That transaction provided a route into Germany, Spain and the Netherlands and broadened the company's European footprint. The company also developed relationships with institutional investors. In 2018, Alcentra agreed to purchase up to $1 billion of business loans originated through Funding Circle's US platform on behalf of its clients, with financing associated with Credit Suisse. The arrangement illustrated the gradual movement from a model centered on individual marketplace investors toward one in which professional capital providers supplied substantial funding. Funding Circle went public on the London Stock Exchange in September 2018. The offering raised about £300 million and gave the business an initial valuation of approximately £1.5 billion. The stock dropped around 24 percent on its first trading day, beginning a difficult period for the listed company. In 2019, revenue increased year over year, but pre-tax losses also widened. The SME Income Fund associated with the platform announced that it would wind up and return capital, while concerns grew around weaker growth, Brexit-related economic uncertainty, increasing UK bad debts and the time required for lenders to sell unwanted loan parts on the secondary market. The pandemic created a further shock. Funding Circle suspended its secondary market for loan parts in April 2020 because the economic outlook made loan pricing and liquidity difficult to manage. The company subsequently introduced products beyond conventional term loans, including FlexiPay in 2021, a flexible credit facility intended to help SMEs pay suppliers and smooth cash flow. In March 2022, Funding Circle announced a definitive strategic shift: it would leave retail peer-to-peer lending and operate through institutional funding. This change removed the individual-investor marketplace from the center of the business and placed greater emphasis on banks, asset managers and other professional lenders. The strategy also simplified the company's geographic and operational model. During 2024, Funding Circle sold its US operations to iBusiness Funding and reduced its workforce while attempting to control losses and improve performance. The company concentrated on the UK, where it offers business loans, flexible credit and payment-related products. It launched the Cashback Business Credit Card in September 2024. In October, co-founder Samir Desai left the board. Lisa Jacobs, who joined the company in 2012 and became chief executive in 2022, remained responsible for the company's transformation and growth strategy. Funding Circle's current identity is therefore different from its original one. It began as a multinational peer-to-peer marketplace but now presents itself primarily as a digital commercial lender for UK SMEs, with institutional funding and multiple credit products. The company remains publicly listed in London and is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
- 2024
US business sold and UK focus strengthened
[1]The company sold its US operations to iBusiness Funding and concentrated on UK SME finance.
- 2022
Permanent exit from peer-to-peer lending
[1]Funding Circle announced that its lending activities would be funded entirely by institutional investors.
- 2021
FlexiPay introduced
[1]Funding Circle added a flexible credit product to help SMEs manage supplier payments and working capital.
- 2020
Peer-to-peer secondary market suspended
[1]The company halted its secondary market for loan parts during the early COVID-19 economic disruption.
- 2018
Initial public offering
[1]Funding Circle listed on the London Stock Exchange and raised approximately £300 million.
- 2015
Zencap acquisition expands European presence
[1]Funding Circle acquired Zencap, gaining operations or market access in Germany, Spain and the Netherlands.
- 2013
Venture financing supports US entry
[1]A funding round led by Accel Partners helped finance the company's expansion into the United States.
- 2012
UK government lends through the platform
[1]The British government used Funding Circle to provide £20 million in loans to small businesses.
- 2010
Funding Circle launches
[1]The company began operating as an online peer-to-peer lending marketplace for SMEs.
- 2008
Founders develop the marketplace concept
[1]Samir Desai, James Meekings and Andrew Mullinger discussed creating a new source of finance for small businesses during the financial crisis.
Products and positioning
A digital, technology-enabled lender and financial-services platform for small and medium-sized businesses.
Business lending · 2010
SME Business Loans
Funding Circle's core product is business lending for small and medium-sized enterprises. Applications are made digitally and assessed using the company's technology and credit-underwriting processes. Since the company's strategic shift away from retail peer-to-peer lending, these loans have been funded by institutional capital providers rather than individual marketplace investors. The product is intended for business purposes such as working capital, expansion, equipment and other operating needs.
Flexible business credit · 2021
FlexiPay
FlexiPay is a flexible credit product introduced in 2021 for businesses seeking to manage cash flow and supplier payments. It allows an eligible business to make payments promptly and repay over selected periods of one, three, six, nine or twelve months. The product extends Funding Circle beyond traditional fixed-term borrowing by addressing short-term liquidity and payment-timing requirements.
Business credit card · 2024
Cashback Business Credit Card
Launched in September 2024, the Cashback Business Credit Card is designed for UK SMEs and combines a business spending facility with cashback. Its published introductory structure offered 2 percent cashback for the first six months up to a stated limit, followed by unlimited 1 percent cashback, alongside a credit facility and an interest-free period subject to the product's conditions.
Brand decisions
2024
Sell the US operationsM&ABackground
The company was narrowing its strategy and attempting to reduce losses and operational complexity.
Action taken
Funding Circle sold its US business to iBusiness Funding and refocused on UK products.
Aftermath
The transaction left the United Kingdom as the company's principal operating market.
2022
Move entirely to institutional lendingStrategyBackground
Funding Circle's original retail peer-to-peer model had become more difficult to operate amid credit, liquidity and investor-demand pressures.
Action taken
The company announced a permanent exit from peer-to-peer lending and adopted an institutionally funded commercial-lending model.
Aftermath
Funding Circle shifted its business toward banks, asset managers and other professional funding partners and subsequently concentrated its geographic footprint on the UK.
2020
Suspend the peer-to-peer secondary marketOtherBackground
The COVID-19 pandemic created uncertainty around SME credit performance, loan valuation and investor liquidity.
Action taken
Funding Circle temporarily stopped trading in loan parts on its secondary market in April 2020.
Aftermath
The suspension highlighted the liquidity limitations of marketplace lending and preceded the company's later move away from retail peer-to-peer finance.
Recent events
Sources3 sources
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