Business loans for a limited company, and what a UK Ltd can borrow

A business loan for a Ltd company can run from £1,000 at NatWest to £750,000 unsecured at Funding Circle, or £2m through Growth Guarantee Scheme lenders, but the directors should expect to be asked for a personal guarantee. The company borrows; you may still be on the hook.

Published 15 May 2026Last updated 1 November 2026

Lender and scheme figures checked 1 November 2026; panel ranges checked 1 September 2026.

Why a Ltd has more options than a sole trader

A limited company is a separate legal person, so it can borrow in its own name. Its filed accounts at Companies House give lenders a public record of turnover and profit, and it builds a commercial credit file separate from the directors'. Some lenders only deal with incorporated businesses: Funding Circle's unsecured loans are for limited companies.

The catch is the guarantee. Limited liability protects you from the company's debts, except the ones you personally guarantee. Read funding without a personal guarantee before you sign one.

Ltd company funding options, on published terms

Option	Amount and term	Published price	Guarantee and catches
NatWest Small Business Loan	£1,000 to £100,000, 1 to 7 years	Representative 12.57% APR (11.90% fixed) on £10,000 over 22 months	A personal, director or member's guarantee may be required. No set-up fee and no early repayment fee.
Funding Circle	£10,000 to £750,000	From 6.9% a year	For limited companies; payout typically within 48 hours of accepting an offer. Guarantee terms: Not published on the product page.
Growth Guarantee Scheme	Term loans £25,001 to £2m, up to six years	Set by each accredited lender	Turnover up to £45m (£54m and up to ten years announced, rolling out). You stay 100% liable.
Barclays overdraft	£500 to £50,000 unsecured	Representative 16.85% (£500 to £5,000) falling to 13.30% (£20,001 to £25,000) EAR, variable	Ltd and LLP lending up to £100k requires a personal guarantee.
HSBC overdraft	Up to £100,000 online or by phone	Representative 14.54% EAR, variable	Unarranged borrowing at 19.50%.
NatWest overdraft	Up to £50,000 unsecured online	Representative 13.37% (on a £5,000 limit) EAR, variable	Reviewed after 12 months.
Santander overdraft	£500 to £25,000	Representative 14.94% (on a £1,000 limit) EAR, variable	Requires a good credit history and no IVA in the last 6 years.
Start Up Loans	£500 to £25,000 per founder, 1 to 5 years	7.5% fixed	A personal loan to the founder, not the company; no application fee and no early repayment fee.
CDFIs	Typically £25,000 to £250,000	Not published centrally	For companies banks turn down; decisions often within a few days.

Asset finance and invoice finance are also open to limited companies; see our asset finance guide. Card-sales advances can suit a company that takes most of its sales by card, but Square's Cash Advance is only for sole traders and partnerships that take payments with Square, so a Ltd needs a different provider.

What a £25,000 loan costs a Ltd over three years

Two prices for the same loan: Funding Circle's lowest advertised rate, which only the strongest applicants get, and the middle of our partner's panel range (7% to 44% a year). Both are illustrations, not quotes.

At 6.9% a year: £770.78 a month, £2,748.26 interest over 36 months
At 15%: £866.63 a month, £6,198.80 interest

The gap is £6,198.80 − £2,748.26 = £3,450.54. Clean, up-to-date accounts and a tidy bank statement are what move you from one end of that range to the other.

If you only need cash for a quarter, a term loan is the wrong tool. A £5,000 NatWest overdraft used in full for 3 months at 13.37% EAR costs £5,000 × ((1 + 13.37%) ^ (3 ÷ 12) − 1) = £159.34 in interest, plus a £100 arrangement fee: £259.34 in all. See overdraft vs loan.

Which to try first

Company under five years old, under £25,000 per founder: Start Up Loans first, accepting that the founder carries the debt personally. At 7.5% fixed with no application fee and no early repayment fee, it is the benchmark any other offer to a young company has to beat.
Established, £10,000 or more: your own bank and Funding Circle side by side. Our bank business loans comparison and business loan interest rates show what to expect.
Over £25,001 without enough security: ask an accredited Growth Guarantee Scheme lender.
Turned down: a Bank Referral Scheme referral, then a CDFI.

For every loan type in one place, read our business loans guide, or compare business loans on the same amount and term. If the company takes card payments, a free statement review can cut its card fees before it borrows.

Find out what your company can borrow

One enquiry reaches our partner's panel of more than 200 UK lenders. A specialist calls you back, Mon to Fri, 9am to 5:30pm.

Funding enquiries are handled by our specialist commercial finance partner. We may receive a commission; it never changes the rate you are offered. Finance is subject to status.

Limited company loan questions

Can a limited company get a business loan?

Yes, and in its own name, which a sole trader cannot do. Published ranges run from £1,000 to £100,000 at NatWest to £10,000 to £750,000 at Funding Circle, which lends to limited companies, and Growth Guarantee Scheme term loans go up to £2m. What you are offered depends on the filed accounts, bank statements and both the company's and directors' credit files.

Do directors have to give a personal guarantee on a Ltd company loan?

Expect to be asked. NatWest: "A personal, director or member's guarantee may be required." Barclays, on its overdrafts: "Ltd and LLP lending up to £100k requires a personal guarantee." Growth Guarantee Scheme: "Personal guarantees can be taken at the lender's discretion." A guarantee makes you personally liable if the company cannot pay, which undoes the limited liability for that debt.

Can a new limited company get a loan?

Yes, mostly through Start Up Loans: £500 to £25,000 per founder at a fixed 7.5% a year, for businesses trading less than 5 years (60 months), up to £100,000 per business. It is an unsecured personal loan for business purposes, so the founder owes it, not the company. Commercial lenders usually want filed accounts first.

What documents does a limited company need for a business loan?

Have the latest filed accounts, recent business bank statements, management accounts if the year end is old, and the directors' details for credit checks. Start Up Loans asks for a business plan and a cash flow forecast. Make sure Companies House filings are up to date before you apply; overdue accounts are an easy reason to decline.

What business funding options are there for a limited company in the UK?

Term loans (NatWest, Funding Circle, Growth Guarantee Scheme lenders), overdrafts (Barclays, HSBC, NatWest and Santander publish representative rates), asset finance, invoice finance, Start Up Loans for the founders, and CDFIs if a bank says no. Card-sales advances suit some, but Square's is open only to sole traders and partnerships that take payments with Square, so check eligibility before you plan around one.

What if the bank turns my company down?

Ask for a referral under the Bank Referral Scheme: 9 designated banks must offer to pass declined SMEs to a finance platform. CDFIs lend £25,000 to £250,000 to businesses banks decline, and CCJs and IVAs are red flags but not always deal-breakers.

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from the lender's or scheme's own published page, read on 1 November 2026. Panel rate ranges come from our partner's lender-panel catalogue, checked 1 September 2026. We do not use comparison sites as sources.