UK invoice finance statistics 2026
UK Finance says its members provide well over £20 billion of invoice finance and asset-based lending to UK businesses at any one time, and around £150 billion a year. Lenders say they advance up to 90% (Skipton) or 95% (Bibby, HSBC) of each invoice. UK Finance says about 34,000 businesses used these facilities at the end of 2024. The most recent breakdown by sector and business size that we could find is from the end of 2017, covering clients in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Services, manufacturing and distribution firms were the biggest users.
Key figures
Invoice finance and asset-based lending that UK Finance members provide at any one time, to tens of thousands of UK businesses. Source: UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026)
Finance that UK Finance members provide through invoice finance and asset-based lending each year. Source: UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026)
Combined yearly turnover of the businesses these members supported in 2024. Source: UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026)
Most a lender says it will advance against each invoice, depending on the lender. These are maximums, not what every business gets. Source: Bibby (up to 95%), Skipton (up to 90%), HSBC (up to 95%)
Average money advanced through invoice finance and asset-based lending across the whole UK market in 2025, including larger firms. This is the British Business Bank's estimate, and it measures something different from UK Finance's "over £20bn" for its members at any one time. Source: British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026)
Change in average money advanced across the whole invoice finance and asset-based lending market in 2025, compared with 2024. Source: British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026)
Average invoice finance and asset-based lending advanced to smaller businesses each quarter in the first nine months of 2025. This is a provisional figure and covers smaller businesses only. Source: British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026)
Change in that smaller business figure, compared with the same nine months of 2024 (provisional). So the whole market grew while lending to smaller businesses fell. Source: British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026)
Change in the number of businesses, large or small, using invoice finance or asset-based lending in 2025. Clearing bank clients fell by 7%, while businesses using non-bank lenders rose by 6%. Source: British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026)
Businesses supported by invoice finance and asset-based lending at the end of 2024, according to UK Finance. The same document elsewhere says around 40,000 client businesses at any one time. Source: UK Finance, The Standards Framework for Invoice Finance and Asset-Based Lending (January 2025)
Companies on the Companies House register with an invoice finance charge not recorded as ended, 30,008 of them still active, at 2 November 2026. This is our own count and it measures something different from UK Finance's figure: only companies register charges, so sole traders and partnerships are never in it, and it includes some facilities that have ended, because lenders do not always file to say a charge has been paid off. Source: Our analysis of the Companies House register of charges
Clients using domestic invoice discounting (16,519) and domestic factoring (15,291) at the end of 2017, across UK Finance members' clients in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Export facilities made up most of the rest (8,315). Source: UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017
Sales put through domestic invoice discounting in 2017 (£262,448m), against £19.6bn (£19,643m) through domestic factoring. Total client sales were £311bn. Source: UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017
Average debtor days (how long customers took to pay) at the end of 2017: 53.8 days for factoring clients and 54.8 days for discounting clients. Source: UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017
Why the two counts differ
UK Finance says invoice finance and asset-based lending supported 34,000 UK businesses at the end of 2024. The same UK Finance document also says its members fund around 40,000 client businesses at any one time. Our own count of the Companies House register finds 35,123 companies with an invoice finance charge that has not been recorded as ended (30,008 of them still active) at 2 November 2026.
The counts measure different things. UK Finance counts the clients of its member lenders, whatever their legal form, and leaves out lenders that are not members. The register counts only companies, because sole traders and partnerships do not register charges, and it covers every lender that registers a charge, member or not.
It also keeps some facilities that have finished, because lenders do not always file to say a charge has ended. So neither figure corrects the other.
Sources: UK Finance, The Standards Framework for Invoice Finance and Asset-Based Lending (January 2025); our analysis of the Companies House register of charges (register at 1 November 2026).
| Figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Invoice finance and asset-based lending that UK Finance members provide at any one time, to tens of thousands of UK businesses. | over £20bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026) |
| Finance that UK Finance members provide through invoice finance and asset-based lending each year. | around £150bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026) |
| Combined yearly turnover of the businesses these members supported in 2024. | over £315bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026) |
| Most a lender says it will advance against each invoice, depending on the lender. These are maximums, not what every business gets. | up to 90% to 95% | Bibby, Skipton and HSBC websites (read 1 November 2026) |
| Average money advanced through invoice finance and asset-based lending across the whole UK market in 2025, including larger firms. This is the British Business Bank's estimate, and it measures something different from UK Finance's "over £20bn" for its members at any one time. | around £22bn | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) |
| Change in average money advanced across the whole invoice finance and asset-based lending market in 2025, compared with 2024. | up about 5% | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) |
| Average invoice finance and asset-based lending advanced to smaller businesses each quarter in the first nine months of 2025. This is a provisional figure and covers smaller businesses only. | £7.5bn | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) |
| Change in that smaller business figure, compared with the same nine months of 2024 (provisional). So the whole market grew while lending to smaller businesses fell. | down 8% | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) |
| Change in the number of businesses, large or small, using invoice finance or asset-based lending in 2025. Clearing bank clients fell by 7%, while businesses using non-bank lenders rose by 6%. | down 3% | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) |
| Businesses supported by invoice finance and asset-based lending at the end of 2024, according to UK Finance. The same document elsewhere says around 40,000 client businesses at any one time. | about 34,000 | UK Finance, The Standards Framework for Invoice Finance and Asset-Based Lending (January 2025) |
| Companies on the Companies House register with an invoice finance charge not recorded as ended, 30,008 of them still active, at 2 November 2026. This is our own count and it measures something different from UK Finance's figure: only companies register charges, so sole traders and partnerships are never in it, and it includes some facilities that have ended, because lenders do not always file to say a charge has been paid off. | 35,123 | Our analysis of the Companies House register of charges |
| Clients using domestic invoice discounting (16,519) and domestic factoring (15,291) at the end of 2017, across UK Finance members' clients in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Export facilities made up most of the rest (8,315). | 16,519 and 15,291 | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017 |
| Sales put through domestic invoice discounting in 2017 (£262,448m), against £19.6bn (£19,643m) through domestic factoring. Total client sales were £311bn. | £262bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017 |
| Average debtor days (how long customers took to pay) at the end of 2017: 53.8 days for factoring clients and 54.8 days for discounting clients. | 53.8 and 54.8 days | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017 |
Source: UK Finance (current page, 2025 Standards Framework and Q4 2017 statistics), our Companies House register analysis, Bibby, Skipton and HSBC
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### UK invoice finance statistics 2026: key figures | Figure | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Invoice finance and asset-based lending that UK Finance members provide at any one time, to tens of thousands of UK businesses. | over £20bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026) | | Finance that UK Finance members provide through invoice finance and asset-based lending each year. | around £150bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026) | | Combined yearly turnover of the businesses these members supported in 2024. | over £315bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending (checked 1 November 2026) | | Most a lender says it will advance against each invoice, depending on the lender. These are maximums, not what every business gets. | up to 90% to 95% | Bibby, Skipton and HSBC websites (read 1 November 2026) | | Average money advanced through invoice finance and asset-based lending across the whole UK market in 2025, including larger firms. This is the British Business Bank's estimate, and it measures something different from UK Finance's "over £20bn" for its members at any one time. | around £22bn | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) | | Change in average money advanced across the whole invoice finance and asset-based lending market in 2025, compared with 2024. | up about 5% | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) | | Average invoice finance and asset-based lending advanced to smaller businesses each quarter in the first nine months of 2025. This is a provisional figure and covers smaller businesses only. | £7.5bn | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) | | Change in that smaller business figure, compared with the same nine months of 2024 (provisional). So the whole market grew while lending to smaller businesses fell. | down 8% | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) | | Change in the number of businesses, large or small, using invoice finance or asset-based lending in 2025. Clearing bank clients fell by 7%, while businesses using non-bank lenders rose by 6%. | down 3% | British Business Bank, Small Business Finance Markets 2025/26 (March 2026), pages 155 to 156 (read 3 November 2026) | | Businesses supported by invoice finance and asset-based lending at the end of 2024, according to UK Finance. The same document elsewhere says around 40,000 client businesses at any one time. | about 34,000 | UK Finance, The Standards Framework for Invoice Finance and Asset-Based Lending (January 2025) | | Companies on the Companies House register with an invoice finance charge not recorded as ended, 30,008 of them still active, at 2 November 2026. This is our own count and it measures something different from UK Finance's figure: only companies register charges, so sole traders and partnerships are never in it, and it includes some facilities that have ended, because lenders do not always file to say a charge has been paid off. | 35,123 | Our analysis of the Companies House register of charges | | Clients using domestic invoice discounting (16,519) and domestic factoring (15,291) at the end of 2017, across UK Finance members' clients in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Export facilities made up most of the rest (8,315). | 16,519 and 15,291 | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017 | | Sales put through domestic invoice discounting in 2017 (£262,448m), against £19.6bn (£19,643m) through domestic factoring. Total client sales were £311bn. | £262bn | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017 | | Average debtor days (how long customers took to pay) at the end of 2017: 53.8 days for factoring clients and 54.8 days for discounting clients. | 53.8 and 54.8 days | UK Finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending statistics, Q4 2017 | Source: UK Finance (current page, 2025 Standards Framework and Q4 2017 statistics), our Companies House register analysis, Bibby, Skipton and HSBC
Which sectors use invoice finance
Number of businesses using invoice finance or asset-based lending from UK Finance members, by sector, at the end of 2017, clients in the UK and the Republic of Ireland (UK Finance).
| Sector | Clients at end of 2017 |
|---|---|
| Services | 11,138 |
| Manufacturing | 10,855 |
| Distribution | 9,875 |
| Transport | 2,761 |
| Construction | 2,611 |
| Retail | 1,003 |
| Other | 3,824 |
| Total | 42,067 |
Clients by size of business
Number of clients by yearly turnover, end of 2017, UK and Republic of Ireland (UK Finance).
| Client turnover | Clients |
|---|---|
| Up to £0.5m | 12,952 |
| £0.5m to £1m | 6,035 |
| £1m to £5m | 13,873 |
| £5m to £10m | 4,054 |
| £10m to £25m | 3,178 |
| £25m to £50m | 1,010 |
| £50m to £100m | 543 |
| Over £100m | 422 |
About these figures
The current UK Finance figures are rounded headlines ("well over", "around") and cover invoice finance and asset-based lending together. Asset-based lending also lends against stock, machinery and property, so the £20 billion is not invoice finance alone. Lenders that are not UK Finance members are not counted.
The 2017 figures are the last detailed set we could find. They show the shape of the market then, not now. We removed older figures from this page that said which sector gets the largest share of lending, because we could not find a source for them. The 2017 data counts clients by sector, not money lent by sector.
What this means if you are thinking about it
With £50,000 of approved invoices and an 85% advance, you would get £42,500 now. Discount charges are set as a margin over the Bank of England base rate, which has been 4% since 5 November 2026.
- To keep collecting from your own customers, look at invoice discounting.
- To have the lender chase payment for you, look at invoice factoring.
- For fees and a worked example, see our cost guide or the calculator.
Questions
How much can I borrow with invoice finance?
It depends on how much you have in unpaid invoices, not on a fixed loan amount. The lender pays a share of each approved invoice. With £50,000 of approved invoices and an 85% advance, you would get £42,500 straight away and the rest, minus fees, when your customers pay. The limit grows as your sales grow.
Why are the client numbers from 2017?
UK Finance used to publish quarterly figures on clients, sales and sectors; the last detailed set we could find is for the end of 2017, and it covers clients in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. It now publishes a headline figure: about 34,000 businesses supported at the end of 2024. We show the 2017 breakdown with its date because nothing newer splits the market by sector or size.
Is invoice finance only for large businesses?
No. At the end of 2017, 12,952 clients had a turnover of £0.5m or less, and 13,873 turned over £1m to £5m. Many lenders set a minimum turnover, though, so a very small business has fewer lenders to choose from.
What does invoice finance cost?
You pay a service charge and a discount charge (interest on the money you have drawn). The discount charge is usually a margin over the Bank of England base rate. See our cost guide for typical ranges and a worked example.
Founder & Managing Director, Muswell Rose, founder and PSC of Best Business Loans Ltd
Adam was managing director of Penny, a UK invoice finance business, from July 2020 to November 2023. His career runs through insurance, mortgages, commercial finance and fintech lending. He writes the Market Invoice library. Career record.
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