Connor Campbell
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With iwoca, you can access flexible business loans to suit a range of purposes. This could be anything from expanding your business, covering a cash-flow issue or hiring new employees.
iwoca is a dedicated business loans provider that currently offers one type of business loan: the Flexi-Loan.
The Flexi-Loan is a type of unsecured loan worth £1,000 to £500,000 with a term of one day to two years, and no early repayment charge.
Iwoca Flexi-Loan
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Representative APR49%
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Representative Example49% APR representative based on a loan of £10,000 for 12 months with an interest rate of 40% p.a. (variable). Total amount payable £12,294.
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Available amounts£1,000 – £500,000
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Available Terms1 day – 2 years
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Key features
- Small businesses can borrow up to £500,000Borrow from £1,000 to £500,000 with the iwoca Flexi-Loan.
- Loan terms start from just one dayWith the iwoca Flexi-Loan, you can pay it back over term lengths from one day to two years.
- No early repayment feeThere is no early repayment charge on the iwoca Flexi-Loan, meaning you won’t be penalised for paying it back before the term ends.
- Limited companies and partnershipsiwoca business loans are only available to limited companies, limited liability partnerships and ordinary partnerships, meaning sole traders cannot apply.
iwoca business loans pros & cons
Pros
- You can borrow up to £500,000 with the Flexi-Loan.
- With loan terms of one day to two years, iwoca may be suitable if you are looking for short-term borrowing.
- There are no early repayment fees.
- Phone and online customer service and support is available.
Cons
- All iwoca Flexi-Loans come with a variable interest rate.
- Sole traders are not eligible for an iwoca business loan.
- Limited companies will be required to provide a personal guarantee, typically from one of the company directors.
- It has no app, so there is no app-based customer service.
- It has no branches, so there is no face-to-face customer service (though you can visit its headquarters in London).
The pros and cons featured here are chosen by us based on a combination of our expert, research-based opinions and an exclusive survey of UK business owners and decision makers. The survey was conducted on behalf of NerdWallet UK in December 2022 to identify the business loans features that people feel are most important. They are unlikely to be the only product features and restrictions that you should consider. Pros and cons are subjective and you should align them to your own personal and business circumstances. Information was correct at the time of publication but may have changed since.
iwoca business loans full review
Launched in 2011 by Christoph Rieche and James Dear, iwoca is an online business lender operating in the UK and Europe.
iwoca is a direct lender, but not a bank. It is an independent company that offers finance to smaller businesses that may struggle to get funding through traditional lenders.
Even though it isn’t a bank, iwoca is still regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and is a member of the Consumer Credit Trade Association (CCTA).
With the iwoca Flexi-Loan, you can borrow between £1,000 and £500,000, with terms starting from one day and going up to two years. This is only available to limited companies and partnerships.
Limited companies will be required to provide a personal guarantee, typically from one of its directors. This means that, if your business cannot repay the loan, the director would become personally responsible for paying it off.
If your loan term is over 12 months, you’ll pay a one-off arrangement fee. Anything under 12 months is fee free.
You’ll then repay the loan in monthly instalments, with interest. The interest rate is variable, meaning that it may go up or down over the course of your loan term.
There are no early repayment charges, meaning you can repay the full amount before the end of your loan term without being charged a fee. You may also be able to apply for a top-up if you need more funds, although this may change your interest rate.
Your interest rate will be informed by the results of iwoca’s risk assessment process. This is based on your company’s trading history and cash-flow forecasts.
iwoca business loans: at a glance
| Amount borrowable | £1,000 to £500,000 |
| Term length | One day to two years |
| Web-based customer service | [email protected] |
| Customer service numbers | 020 3778 0274 (9am to 6pm, Monday to Friday) |
| App | No |
| Face-to-face customer service | No |
| Access to loans without pre-existing account | Yes |
Where iwoca business loans stands out
Maximum amount borrowable: At £500,000, you may be able to borrow more with an unsecured iwoca Flexi-Loan than from many other lenders.
Minimum loan term: If you only need to borrow money over a very short period of time, an iwoca Flexi-Loan may sound appealing, as the minimum term is just one day – shorter than most traditional lenders.
No early repayment fee: You won’t be penalised if you want to repay your loan in full before the term ends.
Account manager: You will have your own personal account manager when you take out an iwoca business loan.
Available to newer businesses: Start ups can apply for an iwoca Flexi-Loan, though the maximum they can borrow is £10,000.
Customer reviews: iwoca has an ‘Excellent’ rating on reviews website Trustpilot.
Where iwoca business loans fall short
Choice of interest rates: All iwoca Flexi-Loans come with a variable interest rate. You won’t have the choice of a fixed interest rate. This means your interest rate could rise or fall over the course of your loan.
Arrangement fee: If your loan term is longer than 12 months, you will be required to pay an arrangement fee up front.
Maximum loan term: The maximum term for the Flexi-Loan is just two years, meaning it might not be appropriate if you are looking to spread the cost of your borrowing over a longer period.
Sole traders: iwoca Flexi-Loans are only available to limited companies and partnerships, meaning sole traders cannot apply.
Personal guarantees: Limited companies are required to provide a personal guarantee, typically from a company director.
iwoca business loans customer reviews
On Trustpilot, iwoca has a score of 4.8 out of 5, based on over 6,000 reviews. Bear in mind that this rating is for the entire iwoca brand and is not specific to any one product they offer.
Information correct as of 17 July 2023.
iwoca business loans eligibility
In general, to be eligible for the iwoca business loan, you will need to:
- be based in the UK
- be a limited company, limited liability partnership or ordinary partnership
- supply basic details about your business
- supply recent bank statements or link to your bank account via open banking
» MORE: Guide to business credit scores
How to apply for a iwoca business loan
When applying for a iwoca business loan, you will likely need to complete the following steps:
- Decide how much you want to borrow, and for how long.
- Fill out an online application form. This will include supplying information, such as whether you run a limited company, ordinary partnership or limited liability partnership, as well as when your business started trading and your turnover in the last 12 months. Documents you need to provide will vary depending on the type of company and loan size, but can include recent bank statements, VAT returns or accounts. If you haven’t started trading yet, you will need to show your business plan.
- iwoca will carry out identity and credit checks, but this is a soft credit check that won’t affect your credit score.
- Wait to hear back from iwoca about your loan approval. You should hear back within 24 hours.
- Check your bank account to make sure the funds have been received. You can expect this within hours of your approval.
» MORE: How to get a business loan
Review methodology
At NerdWallet UK, we base our reviews and our ‘Best’ pages on the results of surveys we undertook about what was important to people who use these products. This allows us to look at products impartially of any commercial arrangements we have and fairly rate the products on the same set of criteria.
Best means our ‘Best’ and is based only on what products we have aligned to our surveys, which form the basis of our reviews and ratings. This means that there will be other products on the market that we have not included in our ‘Best’ pages. Best does not mean it’s best for you, nor does it mean the ‘cheapest’.
Our reviews may display lenders’ rates. This additional information has not been included in our evaluations but is still very important when choosing a product. Rates offered can depend on circumstances, amount and term. Always check details before proceeding with any financial product.
Product details reflect the information that was available at that time but may have changed since. We strive to give you a review on as many products as possible, but there will be products not included on the market. The review is our opinion, but it does not constitute advice, recommendation or suitability for your financial circumstances.
You can view our full review methodology here.
