How to start a commercial finance brokerage in the UK
To start a UK commercial finance brokerage, incorporate a limited company, decide your scope (broking unregulated commercial finance to limited companies needs no FCA authorisation; regulated products or lending to individuals and sole traders does), get lender panel access, learn the core products, and package your first deal. Many brokers earn commission within weeks.
Starting a commercial finance brokerage is more accessible than most people assume, provided you pick the right model first. Focus on unregulated commercial finance arranged for limited companies and you can begin without FCA authorisation, without a mandatory qualification, and without the £6,000 to £30,000 franchise fee that some networks charge before you have placed a single deal.
The real barriers are product knowledge and lender access, not paperwork. A broker who gets panel access and works their network can earn a first commission inside a month. A broker who skips the regulatory and lender groundwork burns months on deals that were never going to fund. This guide deals with both, in order.
- 1
Decide your regulatory scope
Choose whether you will focus on unregulated commercial finance to limited companies (no FCA authorisation required) or serve sole traders, partnerships, or regulated products. Broking to sole traders or partnerships can require FCA permission even for otherwise-exempt business loans, and regulated products always require FCA authorisation or an appointed-representative arrangement before you trade. Most new brokers start with the unregulated limited-company market because the entry point is clean and the market is large.
- 2
Incorporate your limited company
Register a private limited company via Companies House (online, around £100, roughly 24-hour turnaround). Open a dedicated business bank account and speak to an accountant about how you take income. You need no special licence to begin arranging unregulated commercial finance for limited-company borrowers.
- 3
Get lender panel access and your tools
Apply to join CoreFi's broker platform. There is no joining fee. You get access to an active panel of specialist lenders, a deal CRM, document handling, a lender-matching engine, and training materials, replacing the months you would otherwise spend building direct lender relationships from scratch.
- 4
Learn the core products
Work through the product guides: unsecured loans, invoice finance, asset finance, merchant cash advance, and bridging. Use the conversation scripts and lender appetite notes to prepare for client calls. No qualification is required; you need enough product knowledge to identify the right fit and package a clean application.
- 5
Source your first clients
Start with your existing network: business owners, accountants, solicitors, or anyone who works regularly with SMEs. Register introducers on the platform so referral commissions are tracked automatically. Run each deal through the matching engine, select the most appropriate lender, and submit a packaged application.
- 6
Submit, support, and get paid
Support the client through underwriting. On drawdown, the lender pays commission (typically 1% to 3% of the facility). CoreFi processes your share and pays it to you. Your first deal starts your commission history and puts you on the path to a higher tier and higher retention.
Step 1: Choose your model before you incorporate
The most important early decision is which borrowers you serve and which products you arrange. It sets your regulatory position from day one, and that position is not easy to unpick later.
Unregulated commercial finance to limited companies is the cleanest starting point. Unsecured business loans, merchant cash advances, invoice finance, asset finance, commercial bridging and development finance, all arranged for limited-company borrowers, fall outside FCA-regulated activity under the current framework. No FCA authorisation is required. This is the model we operate.
The picture changes the moment you move outside limited companies. Broking to sole traders or partnerships can require FCA permission even for otherwise-exempt business loans, under Article 36A(4) of the Regulated Activities Order. That catches people who assume "business loan equals unregulated". It does not. Borrower type matters as much as product type.
Regulated products are a separate issue entirely. Consumer credit, residential mortgages, and Start Up Loans up to £25,000 to individuals always require FCA authorisation or an appointed-representative arrangement, whatever the borrower. If a prospective client mentions a Start Up Loan, point them to the British Business Bank. Do not arrange it yourself without the correct permissions.
Choosing the unregulated limited-company route does not cap your growth. Most trading businesses of any scale incorporate, and the UK SME lending market is large enough that you will not run out of clients.
Step 2: Set up your limited company
Incorporate a private limited company through Companies House. Online registration completes within about 24 hours and costs £100. You will need a company name (check the register first, because name collisions are common in this sector), a registered office address, at least one director and one shareholder, and a business bank account.
The challenger banks onboard new limited companies in days and charge nothing to start. Monzo Business, Tide and Starling all open accounts quickly. Traditional banks take longer and usually add fees once a free period ends. Start lean.
Speak to an accountant early. How you take income, whether salary, dividends, or a mix, affects your tax position materially. Register for Self Assessment with HMRC. Watch the VAT threshold as your commission income grows; £90,000 in a 12-month period is the current trigger. A decent accountant pays for itself quickly in this type of business.
Step 3: Get lender panel access and a deal platform
A lender panel is your product shelf. Without lenders who will accept your introductions, you have nothing to offer a client. Building direct lender relationships from scratch takes months and usually needs a track record you have not built yet. That is what stalls most new brokers.
CoreFi gives you an active panel of specialist lenders across unsecured business loans, secured commercial loans, invoice finance, asset finance, bridging and development finance. Alongside the panel you get a CRM built for commercial deal flow, document handling, a lender-matching engine, and conversation scripts drawn from live deals. CoreFi is a broker and platform, not a lender; you place the deal, the lender funds it.
There is no joining fee. You earn from your first funded deal at 55% of the lender commission (Associate tier), rising to 70% at Partner as your volume grows. The franchise-model alternatives charge somewhere between £6,000 and £30,000 upfront. We charge nothing. We earn when you earn.
Step 4: Learn the products
You do not need to master every product before your first deal. You do need to hold an informed conversation with a director about their options without guessing.
Start with these five:
- Unsecured business loans: fast to arrange, terms of roughly 3 to 60 months, often up to £500,000 for well-trading companies with clean accounts - Invoice finance (factoring and discounting): converts outstanding invoices into working capital; strong for businesses with B2B debtors and 30-to-90-day payment cycles - Asset finance: hire purchase or leasing for equipment, vehicles and plant; lenders look hard at the asset type and its resale value - Merchant cash advance: repaid as a percentage of card takings; suited to retail and hospitality, weak for low-margin businesses - Commercial bridging: short-term, property-secured, typically 3 to 24 months; lenders move fast but price risk aggressively
The platform includes product guides, lender appetite notes, and scripts written for commercial conversations with directors. No CeMAP or equivalent is required. CeMAP is a residential-mortgage qualification and is not relevant here.
Step 5: Win your first deals and build your pipeline
Your first deals come from your existing network. Former colleagues, local business owners, and the professional advisers around them. Accountants are the standout; they see the same clients' numbers every year and know before anyone else when a business needs capital. Solicitors handling acquisitions and property are a close second.
A workable process for a new broker:
1. Identify a business with a funding need (acquisition, cashflow, equipment, or property) 2. Gather the basics: trading history, last two years of accounts, turnover, amount required, purpose 3. Run the deal through the lender-matching engine to find the best-fit lenders 4. Package the application and submit to one or two lenders 5. Support the client through underwriting to drawdown
Commission is paid by the lender on drawdown, typically 1% to 3% of the facility. On a £200,000 loan at 2%, the gross commission is £4,000; at Associate tier you keep £2,200, and at Partner tier £2,800. These are illustrative, not a guarantee. Your actual numbers depend on the products you place, the lenders you use, and how much volume you build.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need FCA authorisation to start a commercial finance brokerage?
Not if you focus on unregulated commercial finance arranged for limited companies. Products such as unsecured business loans, invoice finance, asset finance, and commercial bridging to limited-company borrowers fall outside FCA-regulated activity. You do need FCA authorisation, or an appointed-representative arrangement, if you broker to sole traders or partnerships, or if you arrange regulated products such as consumer credit, Start Up Loans up to £25,000 to individuals, or residential mortgages.
Do I need a qualification like CeMAP?
No. CeMAP is a residential-mortgage qualification. It is not required or relevant for unregulated commercial finance broking to limited companies. There is no mandatory commercial finance qualification in the UK. Product knowledge and an understanding of lender criteria matter far more in this market.
How much does it cost to start?
The hard costs are low: company incorporation (around £100), a business bank account, and any professional services you choose to use. CoreFi charges no franchise or joining fee. Franchise-model competitors typically charge between £6,000 and £30,000 upfront. Your main investment is time spent learning the products and building your first client relationships.
How long before I earn my first commission?
It depends on your network and the deals you work. New brokers can close a first deal within four to eight weeks of getting panel access. Simpler products such as unsecured loans and merchant cash advances turn around faster than structured property deals. Commission is paid on drawdown. This is not a guarantee of income.
Can I run the brokerage alongside another job?
Yes, initially. Many brokers start part-time and move to full-time once their pipeline generates a reliable income. There is no minimum deal quota on the CoreFi platform. Check any employment contract for restrictive covenants, and make sure you are not using your employer's resources or client relationships to source business.
Launch your brokerage with CoreFi
No franchise fee, no minimum quota, access to an active lender panel from the start. You earn from your first deal and keep 55% to 70% of the lender commission depending on your tier.
Book a call with CoreFi