What are the best alternatives to OakNorth?

Why consider alternatives to OakNorth?

OakNorth Bank plc has provided business lending since 2015 and states it has funded more than £15 billion. It is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the FCA and PRA under Financial Services Register number 629564, and it lends into property development, acquisition finance, revolving credit, fund finance and residential investment. Its whole proposition is bespoke underwriting: it describes itself as not an out-the-box lender with no one-size-fits-all approach.

That approach comes with a hard floor. OakNorth’s minimum business loan is £1 million. Below that, no amount of trading history or profitability helps. And because it publishes no rate range, no representative APR, no minimum trading history and no minimum turnover, a business cannot work out whether it qualifies without opening a conversation.

So the alternatives fall into two groups. The first group serves businesses that need the same relationship-led, individually underwritten treatment at a smaller ticket size. The second serves businesses that fit OakNorth’s size but want either a published price or a different structure, such as asset-based lending against receivables rather than a term facility. This guide covers seven lenders on the Lendus panel across both groups.

Top OakNorth alternatives

1. Allica Bank, Best for a bank facility below the £1 million floor

Allica is the closest thing to OakNorth for businesses that do not need seven figures. It is a licensed UK bank, it underwrites established limited companies and LLPs, and it lends from £25,001, which is 40 times below OakNorth’s minimum. It also publishes what it charges, which OakNorth does not.

Rates and amounts: 9.90% to 13.75% per annum on unsecured business loans of £25,001 to £150,000, plus a 3% arrangement fee. Commercial mortgages quoted individually, with arrangement fees of 1.5% owner-occupied and 2.0% investment. Facilities from £25,001 to £15 million.

Eligibility: 3 or more years of filed accounts for unsecured lending, 2 or more years for a commercial mortgage, and at least 150% debt service cover.

Pros: Published rate range on unsecured lending. Decisions typically no later than the next working day. Commercial mortgages to £10 million owner-occupied and £15 million investment. No early repayment penalties on unsecured loans.

Cons: The 3% arrangement fee adds meaningfully to the cost. Commercial mortgage pricing is quoted rather than published, so the transparency is only partial. Three years of filed accounts rules out newer companies.

Best for: Established companies that were told £1 million is OakNorth’s minimum and need a facility between £25,001 and £15 million from a dual-regulated bank.

2. Shawbrook Bank, Best for property-backed borrowing at a published rate

Where OakNorth’s property lending is quoted case by case, Shawbrook publishes a bridging range of 0.55% to 1.25% per month and commercial mortgages from 5.5% per annum. It lends from £50,000 to £25 million and requires no trading history at all on property-backed bridging, which OakNorth’s individually assessed approach never commits to in advance.

Rates and amounts: 0.55% to 1.25% per month on bridging, with a 10.8% APR representative; commercial mortgages from 5.5% per annum; £50,000 to £25 million.

Eligibility: 12 months or more of trading preferred, none required for property-backed bridging. No turnover requirement for property finance, £200,000 or more for unsecured business loans. Moderate adverse credit considered on property-backed products.

Pros: Full banking licence, FCA and PRA regulated. Indicative terms within 24 hours. Specialist underwriters for complex property, including HMO, portfolio and semi-commercial cases. Published bridging rates.

Cons: Completion typically takes 2 to 4 weeks, slower than a pure bridging fintech. Business loans still require solid trading history and £200,000 of turnover. Limited branch or telephone presence.

Best for: Property investors and developers who want OakNorth-style specialist underwriting but need to know the monthly rate before they commit time to an application.

3. Aldermore Bank, Best for published criteria across four product lines

Aldermore was built for the SME segment that OakNorth’s minimum excludes. It lends from £2,000 to £10 million across asset finance, invoice finance, commercial mortgages and business loans, publishes a 9.3% APR representative, and states plainly what it wants: 12 months or more of trading and £100,000 of turnover for most products.

Rates and amounts: 4.5% to 20% per annum depending on product, asset type and credit profile; 9.3% APR representative; £2,000 to £10 million.

Eligibility: 12 months or more of trading for most products; £100,000 of turnover for most products, with lower thresholds on some asset finance. Fair to good credit required.

Pros: Same-day decisions on asset finance up to £250,000. Four product lines under one banking licence. FSCS deposit protection on the savings side. Published eligibility, so you can self-assess before applying.

Cons: Rates are not the sharpest for prime borrowers compared with mainstream banks. Not a specialist adverse credit lender. Part of a large banking group, so less bespoke than an independent challenger on unusual deals.

Best for: SMEs that want the certainty of a regulated bank and a published rate, and that need a mix of asset, invoice and term funding rather than one large bespoke facility.

4. ThinCats, Best for mid-market acquisition and buyout debt

ThinCats is the closest match to OakNorth on ticket size and philosophy, lending £1 million to £30 million on a relationship-led, human-underwritten basis for M&A, management buyouts, employee ownership trust transitions and private equity backed growth. It has deployed over £2 billion and was acquired by Shawbrook Group in 2025.

Rates and amounts: No published rates. ThinCats prices each loan individually based on the borrower’s cashflow, security and risk profile. Facilities from £1 million to £30 million, terms up to 7 years.

Eligibility: No fixed minimum years of trading. ThinCats states its target borrowers typically hold £0.5 million to £40 million in gross assets and employ 10 to 250 people, and it cites a maximum 85% loan-to-value on asset-backed lending.

Pros: Purpose-built for transaction finance rather than general working capital. Regional business development managers plus a proprietary credit model. Structures include both cashflow loans and asset-backed facilities.

Cons: The same £1 million floor as OakNorth, so it solves nothing for smaller borrowers. No published rates and no published turnaround time. Importantly, ThinCats is not a bank: its parent’s audited FY2024 accounts state the group is not subject to PRA or FCA supervision, so it does not carry OakNorth’s dual-regulated status.

Best for: Mid-sized companies funding an acquisition or a buyout, where the deal structure matters more than the regulatory wrapper.

5. Investec, Best for real estate finance above £10 million

If OakNorth’s ceiling is the constraint rather than its floor, Investec goes higher. Its business finance spans £5,000 to £100 million, with real estate finance starting at £10 million and debt typically written at 50% to 65% loan-to-value or loan-to-cost, all arranged through a dedicated relationship banker.

Rates and amounts: No published standard rates. Asset finance, materials handling finance, working capital and real estate finance are priced individually on the transaction, the asset or property, and the borrower’s covenant strength. Facilities from £5,000 to £100 million.

Eligibility: Not publicly stated. Investec assesses each business individually and targets established mid-market and corporate borrowers rather than start-ups.

Pros: Investec Bank plc’s own terms state it is authorised by the PRA and regulated by the FCA and PRA. Asset finance, working capital, private capital and real estate development and investment finance under one roof. Genuine scale on property debt.

Cons: No published rates, eligibility or timescales, so it shares every transparency problem OakNorth has. Real estate finance starting at £10 million is a higher floor than OakNorth’s £1 million. Relationship banking is slower than an automated decision.

Best for: Corporates and property developers whose requirement is large enough that the £10 million real estate floor is not an obstacle, and who want a wider product set than OakNorth offers.

6. Cynergy Business Finance, Best for asset-based lines rather than term debt

OakNorth lends against a business plan and a covenant. Cynergy Business Finance lends against what the business owns, providing receivables finance, asset finance, inventory finance, property finance, cash flow loans and block discounting from £200,000 to £40 million. That is a structurally different answer for a company with a strong debtor book but a thin balance sheet.

Rates and amounts: No published rates, discount margins or factor rates. Pricing is bespoke and quoted per business after assessment. Funding lines from £200,000 to £40 million.

Eligibility: Not publicly stated. Eligibility is assessed on the strength of the underlying receivables, stock, property or other assets rather than a published years-trading threshold.

Pros: A £200,000 floor rather than £1 million. States it has provided over £1 billion in funding lines. Serves more than 30 industry sectors. Six related asset-based structures under one lender.

Cons: Asset-based lending is exempt from FCA and PRA regulation, so the borrower protections differ from OakNorth’s regulated bank position, although parent Cynergy Bank plc is authorised under firm reference number 575105. No published rates, eligibility or turnaround.

Best for: Scaling businesses with real assets on the balance sheet that need a working capital line rather than a term loan, at a size OakNorth will not consider.

7. Hampshire Trust Bank, Best for property deals on a published timetable

Hampshire Trust Bank is the one lender here that publishes a completion commitment, targeting 21 days from application on bridging finance with dual legal representation. It lends bridging, development finance and specialist mortgages up to £35 million per customer, and it is a full UK bank.

Rates and amounts: Not published for direct comparison. Rates sit in intermediary rate cards issued to registered brokers through HTB’s PUMA portal. Lending up to £35 million per customer, with no published minimum loan size.

Eligibility: No minimum trading history or turnover published. Products are property and asset backed and underwritten case by case, and applications must come through a registered broker.

Pros: Full bank status, authorised by the PRA and regulated by the FCA and PRA, with FSCS-protected deposits. A stated 21 day bridging target rather than a vague timescale. No early repayment charges on bridging.

Cons: Intermediary-only, so you cannot apply directly. Rates and criteria are not public at all, only available through a broker. No published minimum loan size, so smaller borrowers cannot judge eligibility upfront.

Best for: Property borrowers already working with a broker who need a bank behind the deal and a completion date they can plan around.

Comparison table

How to choose the right alternative

Choose Allica Bank if the only thing standing between you and OakNorth is the £1 million minimum and you want a bank that publishes what it charges.

Choose Shawbrook Bank if the borrowing is secured on property and you want a monthly rate quoted from a published range rather than assessed in private.

Choose Aldermore Bank if you need asset finance or invoice finance alongside a loan and want stated eligibility you can check before applying.

Choose ThinCats if you are funding an acquisition, a buyout or an employee ownership transition between £1 million and £30 million, and you accept that it is not a regulated bank.

Choose Investec if your real estate requirement is £10 million or more and you want a relationship banker across several finance types.

Choose Cynergy Business Finance if your strength is receivables, stock or property rather than reported profit, and a £200,000 to £40 million asset-based line fits better than a term loan.

Choose Hampshire Trust Bank if you are working through a broker on a property deal and a 21 day bridging target is worth more than a published rate.

The common thread is that OakNorth’s opacity is normal at this end of the market, not unusual. Four of these seven publish no rate card either. What varies is the floor, the ceiling and the regulatory wrapper, and those are the three things worth deciding on before you make a call. Lendus is an introducer rather than a lender, and comparing the panel costs nothing and involves no credit search.