Unsecured Business Loans for Recruitment Agencies
By Joshua Giles, Founder and Director · Reviewed by the CoreFi credit team
Last updated 20 July 2026
CoreFi is a broker, not a lender. We do not set rates and lenders make all credit decisions.
In short: £10k - £200k over 1 - 5 years. Recruitment is a margin business, not an asset business.
Recruitment is a margin business, not an asset business. You have no plant, no stock, and probably no freehold, which rules out most secured lending and makes unsecured the natural fit. The trade-off is that the lender is lending on your trading track record alone, so they read your accounts line by line.
What they want to see is consistent turnover, a gross margin that comfortably covers the repayment, and a client base that is not concentrated in one or two names. A temp-heavy book counts in your favour because the billing cycle is short and predictable. Perm-only agencies get funded too, but the cash flow is lumpier and some lenders price that in.
The uses we place most often are the gap before invoice finance goes live (usually four to six weeks from application to first draw-down), funding a new desk or a second office, and a job board or CRM spend that is too large for the monthly P&L to absorb cleanly.
For ongoing payroll funding, invoice finance is the right answer, not a term loan. An unsecured loan is a fixed commitment with fixed repayments; it does not flex with your billings. Use it for one-off capital, not as a revolving payroll buffer.
We are a broker, not a lender, so we cannot promise a rate or an approval. Pricing on unsecured recruitment deals runs from around 6% to north of 30% per annum depending on trading history, margin quality, and lender appetite on the day. We will tell you what is realistic before you apply, not after.
Key Benefits
- Lenders assess trading strength, not property, so a leasehold agency with nothing on the balance sheet can still qualify
- Fixed monthly repayments let you model the return on a new desk against a known cost before you commit
- Draw-down in weeks rather than months, which matters when you have already signed a lease or a job board contract
- We know which lenders will look at a temp agency carrying a single anchor client and which will not, so the application goes to the right desk first time
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I choose invoice finance or an unsecured loan?
For ongoing payroll funding, invoice finance is usually cheaper and more appropriate because the facility grows with your billings. An unsecured loan makes more sense for a one-off capital spend, such as a new office fit-out, a CRM system, or a marketing push, where the investment is discrete and the return is measurable. Plenty of agencies run both: invoice finance for working capital, a term loan for the growth investment.
Can a new recruitment agency get funding?
Unsecured business loans from mainstream lenders generally require at least two years of trading accounts. Under two years, the realistic routes are a Start Up Loan (up to £25k, personal guarantee, government-backed), director investment, or an invoice finance facility from a specialist who will lend from day one against confirmed invoices. We will tell you which route fits where you actually are.
How is affordability assessed?
The lender looks at turnover, gross margin, net profit, and existing loan commitments. For recruitment they also weigh the split between temporary and permanent placements (temp billings are more predictable), the number of end clients on your book, and how concentrated your revenue is. A £2m agency billing 60% to one client is a very different risk profile to one billing across thirty.
Can I use an unsecured loan to fund contractor payroll?
You can, but it is the wrong tool for that on an ongoing basis. A fixed-term loan with fixed repayments does not match the variable rhythm of contractor payroll. If payroll funding is the core need, invoice finance or a dedicated payroll funding line is the correct product. An unsecured loan might bridge a short gap while that facility is being arranged, but running payroll off a term loan month to month is not something we would recommend.
Work out your numbers
Related Funding Options
Unsecured Business Loans UK: £1k to £500k, No Property Security
Unsecured business loans from £1k to £500k for UK limited companies. No charge on your property. We broker these deals and can tell you which lenders are open to your sector & turnover.
Invoice Finance for Recruitment Agencies
Recruitment agencies pay contractors weekly but wait 30 to 60 days to collect. Invoice finance funds payroll from the day you raise the placement invoice. We place these facilities with lenders who know the sector.
Revolving Credit for Recruitment Agencies
A revolving credit facility lets UK recruitment agencies draw on payroll cash when placements spike and repay when clients settle. We place these from £25k to £2M.
Business loans by location
Lender appetite varies by city and region. If you would rather start from where your business is based, these local guides cover the same funding with the local picture.
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Get matched with lendersCoreFi is a trading name of JG Core Ltd (Company #16218779, England & Wales). CoreFi acts as a commercial finance broker and does not provide regulated financial advice. All products described are unregulated business-to-business finance. Information on this page is for general guidance only and does not constitute a formal offer of finance. Terms, rates, and availability are subject to lender criteria and may change without notice.