Ortus Relationship Director, Richard King, reveals why he sees alternative finance as the Swiss army knife of commercial lending.

I have now been working for lending businesses for 14 years.  

During that time, I have seen the alternative lending sector grow from just a handful of players providing a niche product to now being a multi-billion pound industry which is vital in complementing other types of finance.

When I started, interest rates of 18% were not unheard of, charging of exit fees was commonplace, and the longest lending term was only 12 months.

At the peak of the market in September 2022, rates as low as 6% were being offered, although this has changed since the Bank of England rapidly increased interest rates.

Furthermore, terms of up to 24 months are now the norm, and here at Ortus, we’re lending for 36 months.

The Swiss army knife of finance

Banks aren’t showing a willingness to offer these products. On the occasions they do, they are often unable to move quickly enough to provide funds within the required timescale. Because of this, SMEs are missing out on valuable opportunities.

As a result, we are being approached by more and more SMEs needing creative solutions.

A one-size-fits-all product just won’t do, and our approach is to add value by building loan structures dictated by borrower’s requirements, not ours.

As long as the loan-to-value ratio is manageable, there are few scenarios when we are unable to help.

Our versatile outlook allows us to provide:

• Flexible drawdown facilities
• Structured finance
• Revolving credit facilities
• Flexible repayment terms.

Indeed, I can think of no better comparison to sum up the flexibility and uses for alternative finance than to see the concept as being akin to a multi-functional Swiss army knife.

Meeting the growing need for bespoke structuring

This is an area ripe for growth. We live in the age of the disruptor, and new lenders seem to appear monthly. This has resulted in a great number of fantastic operators vying for market share.

To stay relevant to borrowers and brokers, it’s important that lenders like us don’t rest on our laurels. Our products are well-established, and we are now constantly looking to see how we can innovate.

Over the last decade, the sector has proved itself able to adapt to a huge range of challenges. Here at Ortus, we look forward to playing our part in continuing to provide support to SMEs and investors.

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