Growth Guarantee Scheme explained

A government guarantee to the lender, not a loan to you. Under the scheme the British Business Bank guarantees 70% of a qualifying facility, so if the borrower defaults the lender recovers most of its money from the government. You still borrow from an ordinary lender at that lender's rate, sign that lender's agreement and, in most cases, give a personal guarantee. What the scheme changes is how far the lender is willing to go on a case it would otherwise decline or cut back.

UK businesses with turnover up to £45 million, trading in the UK, with a viable borrowing proposal that the lender would not offer on the same terms without the guarantee. Each accredited lender layers its own criteria on top, and those are usually the binding ones: a lender that wants two years of accounts wants them with or without the guarantee.

Up to £2 million per business group (£1 million where Northern Ireland Protocol rules apply), across term loans, overdrafts, asset finance and invoice finance, with terms up to six years on loans and asset finance and up to three years on overdrafts and invoice finance. The lender decides the actual amount on its normal affordability tests.

CapExpand is a commercial finance broker, not a lender, so no. What we do is check whether a lender on our panel that fits your case is GGS-accredited, and put the case to them as a scheme application where the guarantee helps. Accredited lenders are listed on the British Business Bank website; whether your case qualifies is the lender's decision.

On a marginal case: a business the lender likes but would otherwise cap at a smaller amount, or decline for thin security. It rarely changes the answer for a strong business, which would be approved anyway, or for a weak one, because the lender still carries 30% of the loss and underwrites accordingly. If a lender is offering you GGS terms, ask what it would offer without the scheme; sometimes the answer is the same loan at the same rate.

It replaced it. The Recovery Loan Scheme closed to new applications on 30 June 2024 and the Growth Guarantee Scheme opened on 1 July 2024 with the same 70% guarantee. The Covid-era Bounce Back Loans and CBILS were earlier, separate schemes with different terms.

Not directly. The lender pays a fee to the government for the guarantee, and it is not permitted to charge that fee to you as a separate line. What you pay is the lender's normal interest and arrangement fee, which can reflect the cost of the scheme in the pricing.