Alternatives to Funding Circle

4 UK business loan alternatives to Funding Circle, compared on product type, ticket band, rate, decision speed and eligibility.

Funding Circle vs the 4 alternatives

Funding Circle compared with 4 alternatives, last reviewed 2026-04-26
	Funding Circle	iwoca	Allica Bank	Fleximize	OakNorth
Product	Term loan	Flexi-loan / line of credit	SME term loan + commercial mortgage	Term loan with flex features	SME term loan + bridging
Ticket	£10k to £500k	£1k to £500k	£150k to £5m	£5k to £500k	£500k to £50m+
Rate	6.9% to 26.9% APR	From 2% per month	From 7.99% APR	From 0.9% per month	Bespoke
Decision	1 to 3 business days	Same day to 24 hours	5 to 10 business days	24 to 48 hours	7 to 14 business days
Soft search	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	No
Rating	4.3	4.4	4.4	4.0	4.2

iwoca

Same day to 24 hours · From 2% per month

iwoca is a UK flexi-loan and line-of-credit provider founded 2011, FCA regulated, tickets £1k to £500k with same-day to 24-hour decisions. The draw-as-you-go structure makes iwoca the best mainstream option for working c

Best for: Working capital and cash-flow gaps, Newer Ltd companies (12 months+).

Allica Bank

5 to 10 business days · From 7.99% APR

Allica Bank is a PRA-regulated UK challenger bank founded 2019, focused on the £150k to £5m SME ticket band that mainstream high-street banks have abandoned. Rates start from 7.99% APR for SME term loans and commercial m

Best for: Established Ltd companies, £250k to £5m tickets.

Fleximize

24 to 48 hours · From 0.9% per month

Direct lender with flex features (top-ups, payment holidays, reduced repayments during slow months). Underwriting more accommodating than mainstream term lenders for sub-2-year trading. Per-month rate hides effective APR

Best for: Seasonal businesses needing payment flex, 12 to 24 month-trading Ltd companies.

OakNorth

7 to 14 business days · Bespoke

OakNorth Bank is a PRA-regulated UK bank founded 2015 that lends to established SMEs at the £500k to £50m+ ticket band, including bespoke commercial term loans, acquisition finance and bridging. Pricing is bespoke and st

Best for: £500k+ tickets, Acquisition / asset finance.

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Last reviewed: 2026-04-26. Editorial by Oliver Mackman.