Funding Options launches Green Finance Marketplace for SMEs

By Megha Bhattacharya

Funding Options, the platform for business finance, has launched a Green Finance marketplace. This initiative reinforces Funding Options’ commitment to drive sustainability in the SME lending market by connecting businesses to the funding they need to help them reach net zero. The Green Finance marketplace will help to bring greater transparency and awareness of the funding options available to support SMEs – with financial products increasingly rewarding businesses that consciously seek to reduce their carbon footprint.

Simon Cureton, CEO of Funding Options, comments, “Funding Options sits at the heart of the SME lending ecosystem, giving us the power to ensure ‘green demand’ is met with ‘green supply’ through our data-driven Funding CloudTM platform. Data analytics and open banking APIs help to ensure that green borrowers are matched with the appropriate lenders, incentivising SMEs to focus on their environmental footprint. We are in agreement with the UK Government that small and medium-sized enterprises are the economic backbone of the UK and so providing access to the best funding options will greatly assist them to implement more sustainable processes, business models and consumption patterns, paving the way for a green future.”

Companies will be able to access funding through the Green Finance marketplace to facilitate the purchase of ‘green assets’ – for example, solar panels or clean vehicles. Lenders will also be matched with ‘green businesses’ displaying strong environmental credentials, such as those participating in renewable, low/zero carbon or sustainable activities. Additionally, the platform will connect ‘green businesses’ – those providing verifiably sustainable products, services or working on a green project – with the right funding partner.

Simon Cureton continues, “As the green finance market for SMEs matures, there will be greater opportunities to support a wider range of businesses by offering lower product pricing to ‘green’ SMEs in order to encourage them to become more sustainable. Our own wider sustainability policy and commitment is to play a leading role helping to drive environmental and social governance in the alternative lending market, while at the same time promoting a broader choice of competitive green finance options for our customers.”