Invoice Finance Annual
Analysis – 2024
Annual analysis of invoice finance debentures registered at Companies House for 2024. The market recorded a +1.3% uplift in new IF charges (+6.3% adjusted for RBS product migration), with a +0.7% net growth rate after attrition.
Headline Growth
+1.3%
uplift in IF debentures
Adjusted Growth
+6.3%
excl. RBS migration
Net Growth
+0.7%
after attrition
Top Sector
883
employment activities
Summary
2024 was an interesting year for the Invoice Finance industry. On the face of it, a 1.3% growth (6.3% adjusted for the RBS Rapid Cash migration) is reasonable. However, lenders suffered from major attrition, which in many cases offset the growth.
There were positive trends not captured by Companies House data alone. Alternative lenders such as Triver, Hydr and Accelerated Payments expanded their market coverage, delivering growth without taking a debenture.
Net growth in the industry has stalled. The emergence of high-cost unsecured lenders has shown that new approaches and technology can create major growth in lending. Invoice finance needs to concentrate on creating innovative solutions to reduce the cost of delivery if attrition rates are to fall and lenders are to generate more sustainable performance.
Key Insights
- Headline growth of +1.3% — rising to +6.3% when adjusted for RBS Rapid Cash product migration from early 2023.
- Major attrition offset gains — net growth after attrition was only +0.7% as many lenders lost as many clients as they gained.
- Employment sector dominated — 883 charges, up 120 year-on-year (+16%), continuing to lead all sectors.
- Zodeq grew strongly — +58 charges to 157, with a 41% net growth rate, the strongest among specialists.
- Alternative lenders expanding — Triver, Hydr and Accelerated Payments grew without registering debentures, not captured in these figures.
Lender Analysis
Growth rates, attrition, and book movement by lender for the full year 2024.
Banks
| Lender | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Var. | Growth Rate | Attrition | Net Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RBS Invoice Finance | 229 | 480 | 268 | -212 | 6% | 11% | -5% |
| Lloyds Commercial Finance | 427 | 402 | 475 | +73 | 7% | 11% | -4% |
| HSBC Invoice Finance | 287 | 215 | 211 | -4 | 6% | 12% | -6% |
| SME Invoice Finance | 83 | 70 | 72 | +2 | 16% | 16% | – |
| Investec Capital | 48 | 28 | 36 | +8 | 20% | 11% | +9% |
Large Independents
| Lender | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Var. | Growth Rate | Attrition | Net Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bibby Finance | 577 | 578 | 657 | +79 | 18% | 17% | +1% |
| eCapital Commercial Finance | 355 | 404 | 410 | +6 | 26% | 19% | +7% |
| Close Brothers | 308 | 321 | 343 | +22 | 15% | 15% | – |
| Skipton Business Finance | 170 | 209 | 186 | -23 | 11% | 12% | -1% |
| Novuna | 256 | 187 | 185 | -2 | 13% | 14% | -1% |
| Time Finance | 114 | 103 | 110 | +7 | 41% | 20% | +21% |
| Ultimate Finance | 116 | 94 | 102 | +8 | 39% | 12% | +27% |
| Cynergy Business Finance | 117 | 121 | 95 | -26 | 42% | 20% | +22% |
| IGF | 51 | 38 | 40 | +2 | 13% | 19% | -6% |
| Praetura | 69 | 44 | 40 | -4 | 26% | 16% | +10% |
| Secure Trust Bank | 43 | 28 | 30 | +2 | 8% | 15% | -7% |
| Leumi ABL | 31 | 25 | 28 | +3 | 8% | 17% | -9% |
| Pulse Cashflow Finance | 30 | 21 | 17 | -4 | 6% | 25% | -19% |
| FGI Finance | 3 | 2 | 5 | +3 | 31% | 13% | +18% |
Mid-tier Independents
| Lender | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Var. | Growth Rate | Attrition | Net Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Factors | 95 | 134 | 181 | +47 | 40% | 27% | +13% |
| Apollo Business Finance | 90 | 160 | 144 | -16 | 41% | 13% | +28% |
| Optimum SME Finance | 75 | 95 | 125 | +30 | 50% | 23% | +27% |
| 4SYTE | 53 | 45 | 71 | +26 | 27% | 17% | +10% |
| Paragon Business Finance | 70 | 79 | 62 | -17 | 15% | 17% | -2% |
| Wedo Finance | 59 | 53 | 47 | -6 | 34% | 16% | +18% |
| Peak Cashflow | 28 | 47 | 42 | -5 | 23% | 37% | -14% |
| TP24 | 23 | 26 | 35 | +9 | 70% | 7% | +63% |
| GRENKE | 29 | 16 | 30 | +14 | 33% | 12% | +21% |
| Castlebridge Finance | 21 | 28 | 29 | +1 | 39% | 20% | +19% |
| Sallyport Commercial Finance | 0 | 16 | 28 | +12 | 147% | 25% | +122% |
| Shire Invoice Finance | 18 | 23 | 24 | +1 | 44% | 14% | +30% |
| Satago | 40 | 51 | 22 | -29 | 19% | 27% | -8% |
| FI Capital | 5 | 12 | 16 | +4 | 80% | 29% | +51% |
| Partnership Invoice Finance | 20 | 13 | 16 | +3 | 21% | 23% | -2% |
| Flex ABL | 29 | 20 | 14 | -6 | 27% | 16% | +11% |
| Regency Factors | 32 | 35 | 11 | -24 | 16% | 7% | +9% |
| Simplicity Finance | 27 | 20 | 11 | -9 | 9% | 12% | -3% |
| Kriya | 136 | 106 | 10 | -96 | 3% | 37% | -34% |
Specialists
| Lender | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Var. | Growth Rate | Attrition | Net Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zodeq | 90 | 99 | 157 | +58 | 50% | 9% | +41% |
| Quba Solutions | 80 | 92 | 144 | +52 | 44% | 14% | +30% |
| Sonovate | 57 | 88 | 136 | +48 | 52% | 14% | +38% |
| Liquid Link | 39 | 25 | 41 | +16 | 49% | 9% | +40% |
| Giant Finance | 26 | 28 | 18 | -10 | 20% | 14% | +6% |
Sector Analysis
Breakdown of new IF charges by sector for 2024, showing year-on-year changes in activity.
| Sector | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | Var. | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Employment activities | 768 | 763 | 883 | +120 | +16% |
| Wholesale trade | 409 | 450 | 412 | -38 | -8% |
| Specialised construction | 355 | 352 | 389 | +37 | +11% |
| Transportation | 333 | 355 | 347 | -8 | -2% |
| Office admin & business support | 230 | 227 | 220 | -7 | -3% |
| Fabricated metal products | 150 | 141 | 159 | +18 | +13% |
| Retail trade | 129 | 147 | 124 | -23 | -16% |
| Financial services (excl. insurance) | 141 | 160 | 108 | -52 | -33% |
| Technology & software | 105 | 98 | 105 | +7 | +7% |
| Warehousing & transport support | 62 | 82 | 99 | +17 | +21% |
| Food products manufacturing | 84 | 79 | 89 | +10 | +13% |
| Wholesale & retail trade | 51 | 66 | 84 | +18 | +27% |
| Residential care | 64 | 65 | 79 | +14 | +22% |
| Waste collection & recycling | 31 | 34 | 50 | +16 | +47% |
Regional Overview
Top lenders by region for 2024, based on new IF charge registrations.
01. North East
- 1. Bibby Finance – 24
- 2. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 19
- 3. Close Brothers – 14
- 4. eCapital – 11
- 5. Skipton Business Finance – 9
02. North West
- 1. Bibby Finance – 74
- 2. Close Brothers – 58
- 3. eCapital – 47
- 4. RBS Invoice Finance – 44
- 5. Skipton / Lloyds – 39
03. Yorkshire & Humber
- 1. Bibby Finance – 62
- 2. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 43
- 3. eCapital – 38
- 4. Close Brothers – 34
- 5. RBS Invoice Finance – 26
04. Midlands
- 1. Bibby Finance – 77
- 2. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 66
- 3. eCapital – 48
- 4. Close Brothers – 44
- 5. Skipton Business Finance – 30
05. East Midlands
- 1. Bibby Finance – 27
- 2. eCapital – 15
- 3. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 14
- 4. RBS Invoice Finance – 11
- 5. Close Brothers – 10
06. East of England
- 1. Bibby Finance – 45
- 2. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 43
- 3. HSBC Invoice Finance – 21
- 4. Close Brothers – 21
- 5. eCapital – 20
07. South East
- 1. Bibby Finance – 168
- 2. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 110
- 3. eCapital – 94
- 4. Team Factors – 63
- 5. RBS Invoice Finance – 60
08. South West
- 1. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 41
- 2. Bibby Finance – 35
- 3. Close Brothers – 20
- 4. Novuna – 20
- 5. Skipton Business Finance – 17
09. London
- 1. Bibby Finance – 80
- 2. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 53
- 3. Sonovate – 43
- 4. eCapital – 43
- 5. Close Brothers – 36
10. Wales
- 1. eCapital – 30
- 2. Bibby Finance – 18
- 3. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 13
- 4. Novuna – 12
- 5. Close Brothers – 10
11. Scotland
- 1. eCapital – 48
- 2. Bibby Finance – 37
- 3. Lloyds Commercial Finance – 34
- 4. Close Brothers – 23
- 5. RBS Invoice Finance – 16
12. Northern Ireland
- 1. Close Brothers – 16
- 2. GRENKE – 11
- 3. Bibby Finance – 6
- 4. Upstream Working Capital – 4
- 5. RBS Invoice Finance – 3
Debtor Book Analysis
Distribution of new IF charges by debtor book size for 2024. Shows how each lender segment serves different market tiers based on disclosed trade debtor values.
Banks
| Lender | New Inc. | Not Disc. | 1–50k | 50–100k | 100–250k | 250–500k | 500k–1m | £1m+ | Total | >£250k | >£1m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RBS Invoice Finance | 23 | 18 | 7 | 8 | 21 | 25 | 47 | 119 | 268 | 71% | 44% |
| Lloyds Commercial Finance | 113 | 93 | 49 | 31 | 52 | 52 | 41 | 44 | 475 | 29% | 9% |
| HSBC Invoice Finance | 21 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 20 | 32 | 108 | 211 | 76% | 51% |
| SME Invoice Finance | 24 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 11 | 72 | 28% | 15% |
| Investec Capital | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 10 | 36 | 67% | 28% |
| Bank subtotal | 193 | 132 | 67 | 45 | 109 | 110 | 142 | 321 | 1,119 | 51% | 29% |
Large Independents
| Lender | New Inc. | Not Disc. | 1–50k | 50–100k | 100–250k | 250–500k | 500k–1m | £1m+ | Total | >£250k | >£1m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bibby Finance | 153 | 147 | 71 | 45 | 80 | 50 | 50 | 61 | 657 | 25% | 9% |
| eCapital Commercial Finance | 136 | 108 | 42 | 16 | 50 | 27 | 21 | 10 | 410 | 14% | 2% |
| Close Brothers | 62 | 46 | 17 | 16 | 33 | 42 | 56 | 71 | 343 | 49% | 21% |
| Skipton Business Finance | 45 | 36 | 16 | 11 | 31 | 21 | 17 | 9 | 186 | 25% | 5% |
| Novuna | 46 | 42 | 22 | 13 | 20 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 185 | 23% | 5% |
| Time Finance | 22 | 23 | 15 | 8 | 15 | 12 | 10 | 5 | 110 | 25% | 5% |
| Ultimate Finance | 17 | 16 | 9 | 3 | 14 | 19 | 9 | 15 | 102 | 42% | 15% |
| Cynergy Business Finance | 9 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 16 | 43 | 95 | 71% | 45% |
| IGF | 7 | — | 3 | — | 3 | 2 | 4 | 21 | 40 | 68% | 53% |
| Praetura | 6 | — | 3 | — | 2 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 40 | 68% | 43% |
| Secure Trust Bank | 11 | — | 5 | — | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 30 | 43% | 27% |
| Leumi ABL | 7 | — | 4 | — | 1 | — | 2 | 1 | 28 | 50% | 46% |
| Pulse Cashflow Finance | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | — | — | 17 | 6% | 0% |
| FGI Finance | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 5 | 100% | 100% |
| Large ind. subtotal | 525 | 447 | 200 | 118 | 257 | 202 | 211 | 288 | 2,248 | 31% | 13% |
Mid-tier Independents
| Lender | New Inc. | Not Disc. | 1–50k | 50–100k | 100–250k | 250–500k | 500k–1m | £1m+ | Total | >£250k | >£1m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Factors | 83 | 56 | 20 | 7 | 11 | 4 | — | — | 181 | 2% | 0% |
| Apollo Business Finance | 47 | 62 | 21 | 6 | 4 | 4 | — | — | 144 | 3% | 0% |
| Optimum SME Finance | 32 | 43 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 11 | 4 | 1 | 125 | 13% | 1% |
| 4SYTE | 9 | 14 | 7 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 9 | 9 | 71 | 44% | 13% |
| Paragon Business Finance | 14 | 7 | 6 | 12 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 5 | 62 | 26% | 8% |
| Wedo Finance | 12 | 17 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 47 | 17% | 6% |
| Peak Cashflow | 12 | 11 | 5 | 1 | 9 | 2 | 2 | — | 42 | 10% | 0% |
| TP24 | 4 | — | — | — | 9 | 8 | 14 | — | 35 | 89% | 40% |
| GRENKE | 7 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | — | 30 | 7% | 3% |
| Castlebridge Finance | 9 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 1 | — | 29 | 14% | 0% |
| Sallyport Commercial Finance | 9 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 4 | — | — | — | 28 | 14% | 0% |
| Shire Invoice Finance | 5 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 24 | 0% | 0% |
| Satago | 1 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 23% | 5% |
| FI Capital | 1 | — | 2 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | — | 16 | 13% | 13% |
| Mid-tier subtotal | 248 | 264 | 103 | 58 | 81 | 66 | 30 | 37 | 887 | 15% | 4% |
Specialists
| Lender | New Inc. | Not Disc. | 1–50k | 50–100k | 100–250k | 250–500k | 500k–1m | £1m+ | Total | >£250k | >£1m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zodeq | 68 | 35 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 157 | 13% | 4% |
| Quba Solutions | 104 | 24 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 3 | — | — | 144 | 2% | 0% |
| Sonovate | 33 | 43 | 22 | 5 | 13 | 7 | 9 | 4 | 136 | 15% | 3% |
| Liquid Link | 22 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 1 | — | — | — | 41 | 0% | 0% |
| Giant Finance | 13 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 18 | 0% | 0% |
| Specialist subtotal | — | 118 | 53 | 15 | 27 | 20 | 12 | 11 | 496 | 9% | 2% |
Refactoring Channels
Where borrowers moved when switching lender in 2024. Shows the flow of facilities between providers — which lenders are gaining share through refactoring and which are losing it.
Lloyds was the largest refactoring source in 2024, with 105 facilities moving to competitors. Bibby Finance also lost 89 refactored facilities, though offset by absorbing 81 from other lenders — the highest inflow of any provider.
Close Brothers received 69 refactored facilities from a broad spread of competitors, while eCapital absorbed 67. Skipton lost 77 facilities — largely to Bibby and Lloyds — continuing a trend of book contraction among mid-tier lenders.
Zodeq led specialist inflows, receiving 55 refactored clients largely from banks and large independents, demonstrating its pull in the recruitment and contractor finance segments.
Top Refactoring Recipients – 2024
| New Provider | Total In | Largest Source | From | From | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bibby Finance | 81 | Lloyds | 16 | Close Brothers | 11 |
| Close Brothers | 69 | Lloyds | 14 | RBS | 8 |
| eCapital Commercial Finance | 67 | Bibby | 12 | Lloyds | 11 |
| Lloyds Commercial Finance | 59 | Bibby | 8 | Skipton | 7 |
| Zodeq | 55 | Quba Solutions | 15 | RBS | 12 |
| Novuna | 32 | Lloyds | 7 | Bibby | 6 |
| RBS Invoice Finance | 48 | Lloyds | 15 | Bibby | 8 |
| Skipton Business Finance | 47 | Lloyds | 10 | Bibby | 4 |
| HSBC Invoice Finance | 42 | Lloyds | 12 | RBS | 5 |
| Time Finance | 25 | Bibby | 5 | Lloyds | 4 |
Top Refactoring Sources – 2024
| Old Provider | Total Out | Largest Destination | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lloyds Commercial Finance | 105 | RBS Invoice Finance | 15 |
| Bibby Finance | 89 | eCapital | 12 |
| Skipton Business Finance | 77 | Lloyds | 10 |
| Close Brothers | 70 | Bibby | 11 |
| Novuna | 59 | Bibby | 6 |
| HSBC Invoice Finance | 52 | HSBC (internal) | 12 |
| RBS Invoice Finance | 48 | Close Brothers | 8 |
| eCapital Commercial Finance | 43 | Bibby | 5 |
Access the Full Report
Have questions about the analysis, want bespoke data cuts, or need lender-level research for your organisation? Get in touch with the Spark team.
Contact the Spark TeamMethodology
This analysis uses AI-driven classification to identify invoice finance charges registered at Companies House. Charges are matched based on the charge-holder name or a combination of the name and the nature of the charge description.
For some lenders (e.g. Barclays, Santander), it is not feasible to produce a strong enough pattern to reliably match charges to IF. Where a group of companies has a charge, this is counted as one event. Multiple charges registered by the same company within the reporting period are not counted separately. Refactors are based on IF charges where a previous IF charge was satisfied within 100 days of the new charge or was left open.
Growth Rate is calculated as new charges divided by opening unsatisfied charges at 1 January 2024. Attrition Rate is satisfied charges plus insolvencies divided by the same opening number. Net Growth Rate is Growth Rate minus Attrition Rate.
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