Compare Asset Finance Lenders UK 2026: 8 Providers Rated on Rates, Eligibility and Products

How to compare UK asset finance lenders

Comparing UK asset finance lenders requires looking at more than the monthly payment. The right lender depends on six dimensions: the facility size you need, the asset type you are financing, your trading history and credit profile, the speed at which you need a decision, the products available (hire purchase, finance lease, operating lease, refinance), and the pricing transparency the lender offers before you apply.

Bank lenders including Shawbrook Bank, Aldermore Bank and Close Brothers provide institutional certainty, PRA regulation and consistent pricing, but have higher minimum thresholds and longer processing times than specialist non-bank lenders. Specialist broker-lenders including Portman Asset Finance are faster and more accessible but pricing depends on which funder is matched. Alternative lenders including Nucleus Commercial Finance and Fleximize offer the most flexible eligibility but typically charge higher rates than bank lenders for equivalent borrowers.

This comparison covers eight lenders assessed independently using data published on their own websites, the FCA Register, Companies House and published company accounts. No commission is earned from any lender featured. Every FCA FRN number has been verified against the FCA Register as at June 2026.

UK asset finance lender comparison table 2026

Sources: lender published websites and FCA Register verified June 2026. “Not published” means the lender does not publicly disclose this figure; applicants must enquire directly. Shawbrook min loan cited as £15,000–£25,000 reflecting different published sources. Close Brothers minimum per Growth Guarantee Scheme published terms.

Products available from each lender

Nucleus and Fleximize offer business loans and revenue-based finance rather than traditional asset finance products. ✓ = confirmed from published sources. – = not offered or not confirmed from published sources.

Asset types accepted by each lender

Sources: lender published websites June 2026. Aldermore confirmed: trucks, trailers, vans, manufacturing machinery, construction equipment, recycling machinery and agricultural equipment. Novuna confirmed: office equipment, IT, vehicles, plant, medical, catering, print. Fleximize offers business loans rather than asset-specific finance; the funded asset is at the borrower's discretion.

Individual lender profiles

Shawbrook Bank (FCA FRN 204596)

Shawbrook Bank was listed on the London Stock Exchange in October 2025 following an initial public offering valued at a minimum of £200 million. The bank operates as a full UK deposit-taking institution regulated by both the FCA and the Prudential Regulation Authority. Asset finance sits within Shawbrook Business Finance and covers hard and selected soft assets. Published sources indicate an asset finance range of £15,000 to £25,000,000 with terms of 1 to 7 years, up to 90 percent asset funding and VAT deferral options available. The bank offers case-by-case pricing rather than published rate ranges. A minimum of 2 years trading history and the provision of 12 months trading accounts is required. In December 2025, Shawbrook acquired SME lending company Playter, extending its SME product range beyond traditional asset finance.

Portman Asset Finance (FCA FRN 614061)

Portman Asset Finance Ltd (trading as Portman Finance Group) is a specialist business-to-business finance broker and lender that has supported over 36,000 businesses and secured over £1.5 billion in funding since its founding in 2007. The firm operates from Northampton and offers hire purchase, finance lease, refinance and sale and leaseback on hard assets including construction plant, vehicles and agricultural machinery. Published product pages confirm terms from 3 months to 6 years with borrowing from £10,000 to £2,000,000. The broker-lender model means Portman works with a panel of funders; pricing and eligibility vary by funder matched to the application. An online rate illustration tool is available on the Portman website, though illustrations are for guidance only and are not a formal offer.

Close Brothers Asset Finance (FCA FRN 124750)

Close Brothers Group plc (LSE: CBG) is a UK merchant banking group with roots to 1878. The group announced the sale of its Winterflood Securities division to Marex for £104 million in July 2025. In 2025, Close Brothers announced provisions of approximately £300 million for redress payments relating to the FCA's motor finance commission review. Close Brothers Asset Finance operates dedicated sector divisions for agriculture, transport and haulage, print and packaging, manufacturing, construction and technology. Published Growth Guarantee Scheme terms confirm minimum facility sizes starting from £1,000 for asset finance with term loans from £25,001. Maximum facility per business group is £2,000,000 under the Growth Guarantee Scheme; standard commercial facilities can be significantly larger. Block discounting is available to finance brokers and equipment dealers as a separate product.

Aldermore Bank (FCA FRN 204503)

Aldermore Bank plc is part of FirstRand Group and in March 2026 acquired a £465 million portfolio of bridging finance loans from Octane Capital, extending its secured lending capability. Asset finance is offered for intermediary introduction and covers trucks, trailers, vans, manufacturing machinery, construction equipment, recycling machinery and agricultural equipment as confirmed on Aldermore's own FAQ pages. The bank accepts sole traders, partnerships, limited liability partnerships and limited companies. Applications are assessed individually on the strength of the business, experience and future plans. Specific minimum and maximum loan amounts and minimum trading history are not published on the Aldermore website for asset finance; applicants must enquire via a broker or direct.

Novuna Business Finance (FCA FRN 704348)

Novuna Business Finance, formerly Hitachi Capital UK, rebranded in 2022 following acquisition by Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. The FCA-registered entity is Mitsubishi HC Capital UK plc (Companies House No. 01630491). Asset finance is provided through hire purchase and leasing, accessed primarily via FCA-authorised broker introducers and vendor finance programmes with equipment dealers and manufacturers. The minimum deposit required is 10 percent as published on the Novuna FAQ page, though actual deposit requirements depend on individual circumstances. Novuna does not currently offer business loans, only hire purchase and leasing products. Asset classes covered include office equipment, IT, vehicles, plant, medical, catering and print machinery as confirmed from the Novuna products pages.

Time Finance plc (FCA FRN 724367)

Time Finance plc was formerly known as 1pm plc before changing its name in December 2020. The AIM-listed company is headquartered in Bath and also has offices in Reading, Manchester and Warrington. As of November 2023, the business was providing over £188 million of funding to UK businesses. Time Finance provides asset finance, invoice finance, business loans, vehicle finance and asset-based lending. The company's LinkedIn confirms products include hire purchase, refinance, sale and leaseback and vehicle finance alongside invoice finance. Published information on minimum loan size is not readily available from Time Finance's website; the business focuses on multi-product relationships for SMEs. A minimum of 12 months trading is indicated from published sources.

Nucleus Commercial Finance (FCA FRN 722830)

Nucleus Commercial Finance offers funding from £3,000 to £500,000 with a multi-product range including business growth loans, revenue-based finance and asset finance. The business growth loan requires a minimum of 18 months trading history and applicants must be homeowners in England or Wales. A personal guarantee from directors or shareholders is required. The minimum loan for the business growth loan is £3,000 as confirmed on the Nucleus FAQ pages. Revenue-based finance is also available, where repayments are calculated as a percentage of monthly revenue rather than fixed instalments. Flat rates start from 5 percent for cash flow funding as published on the Nucleus website. Funds can be available within 24 hours of approval.

Fleximize (FCA FRN 669275)

Fleximize offers secured and unsecured business loans as an alternative to traditional asset finance. The minimum trading requirement is 6 months with a minimum monthly turnover of £5,000 as confirmed on the Fleximize FAQ page. The company lends to limited companies and LLPs registered in the UK; sole traders and non-limited partnerships can apply for loans over £25,000. Interest rates start from 0.9 percent per month as published on the Fleximize website, with no hidden fees and no early repayment penalties. Maximum borrowing is up to two months' revenue, or up to £500,000 with security and £1,000,000 for cash flow loans per the Fleximize product pages. Fleximize offers repayment holidays after three successful repayments, which is unusual among UK business lenders.

Which lender is right for your business?

Rate transparency: which lenders publish their rates?

The majority of UK asset finance lenders do not publish specific rates for business asset finance. Rates depend on the creditworthiness of the borrower, the asset type, loan-to-value ratio, term length and funder appetite, making a single published rate misleading for most applicants.

Fleximize publishes rates from 0.9 percent per month on its website with a business loan calculator, making it the most transparent lender in this comparison for upfront cost estimation. Nucleus publishes flat rates from 5 percent for cash flow products. Aldermore publishes indicative rate ranges. Portman offers an online illustration tool, though this is described as illustrative only.

Shawbrook, Close Brothers, Novuna and Time Finance do not publish asset finance rates. Applicants must submit an application or enquire via a broker to receive indicative terms. This is standard practice for secured business lending where rates are priced individually.

The absence of published rates does not indicate higher pricing. Bank lenders that do not publish rates may offer more competitive pricing than transparent alternative lenders for borrowers who meet their criteria, because their cost of capital (from retail deposits) is lower than non-bank lenders.

FCA regulation and authorisation

All eight lenders in this comparison hold FCA authorisation for credit broking or regulated credit activities. All FRN numbers have been verified on the FCA Register at register.fca.org.uk as at June 2026. Three lenders are also regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority as UK deposit-taking banks: Shawbrook Bank (FRN 204596), Aldermore Bank (FRN 204503) and Close Brothers Group (FRN 124750). PRA regulation provides an additional layer of oversight and means these lenders are also subject to capital adequacy requirements set by the Bank of England.

Businesses should verify any lender or broker's FCA authorisation before entering a finance agreement. This can be done at register.fca.org.uk by searching for the firm name or FRN. Authorisation status can change; the register is the authoritative real-time source.

Frequently asked questions

How do I compare asset finance rates across lenders?

Comparing asset finance rates is difficult because most lenders do not publish rates publicly. The most effective approach is to use an FCA-authorised asset finance broker with access to multiple lender panels, which allows comparison of live indicative terms across several lenders without multiple credit searches. Fleximize and Nucleus publish starting rates on their websites (0.9 percent per month and 5 percent flat rate respectively), but these apply to their business loan products rather than traditional hire purchase or finance lease. For hire purchase and finance lease, the quoted rate should always be converted to an APR for like-for-like comparison.

Which UK asset finance lender has the lowest minimum loan?

Nucleus Commercial Finance has the lowest published minimum loan at £3,000 for its business growth loan product. Portman Asset Finance and Close Brothers Asset Finance have published minimums from £10,000 and £1,000 respectively based on their published product information. Shawbrook Bank's published minimum is £15,000 to £25,000 depending on the source. Aldermore, Novuna, Time Finance and Fleximize do not publish specific minimum asset finance loan amounts on their websites; applicants should enquire directly.

Which lender has the fastest credit decision?

Portman Asset Finance, Time Finance and Nucleus Commercial Finance all confirm same-day credit decisions for standard applications on their published websites. Portman specifically references same-day decisions for applications within standard parameters. Fleximize states funds can be in the account within 24 hours of approval. Shawbrook and Aldermore typically take 24 to 48 hours. Close Brothers takes 24 to 72 hours due to the more complex sector-specialist underwriting involved.

What is the difference between a bank asset finance lender and a non-bank lender?

Bank asset finance lenders including Shawbrook, Aldermore and Close Brothers are regulated by both the FCA and the Prudential Regulation Authority, hold a UK banking licence and fund lending primarily from retail deposits. This gives them a lower cost of capital and typically allows more competitive pricing for borrowers who meet their criteria. Non-bank lenders including Portman, Time Finance, Nucleus and Fleximize are FCA-authorised but not PRA-regulated. They fund lending from wholesale markets, institutional investors or proprietary capital, which typically results in a higher cost of capital and therefore higher rates, but often with more flexible eligibility criteria and faster decisions.

Can I use an asset finance broker to compare these lenders?

Yes. An FCA-authorised asset finance broker with access to multiple lender panels can compare live indicative terms from several lenders in a single application process, without triggering multiple hard credit searches. The broker's duty under FCA Consumer Duty is to act in the customer's best interests and to disclose any commission received from lenders. Portman Asset Finance operates as both a direct lender and a broker to its funder panel; other lenders in this comparison are direct lenders only. Businesses can also approach lenders directly, though this requires separate applications to each lender.