Funding for restaurants and takeaways
Hospitality cash flow is lumpy in a way banks don't price for: December pays for January, suppliers want paying weekly, and the VAT bill lands in the quietest quarter. We fund restaurants, takeaways and cafés on what goes through the card machine, with repayments that fall when trade does.
Why restaurants struggle to get funded, and how we look at it differently
A restaurant that takes £45,000 a month through the card machine is a strong business. It's also one most high-street banks won't lend to, because the accounts show thin margins, the lease is the only asset, and the owner can't produce three years of trading history for a unit that opened eighteen months ago. The bank's model is built for businesses with assets; a restaurant's value is in its covers and its card terminal.
We underwrite from the terminal. Six months of card settlement statements from Dojo, Worldpay, Square, SumUp or Zettle show us what the room actually does on a Friday night versus a Tuesday lunch, how January compared to December, and whether the takings are growing. That, plus six months of bank statements, is the whole assessment. No business plan, no forecasts, no accounts.
The product that fits most restaurants is a merchant cash advance: a lump sum repaid as a fixed share of each day's card takings. A busy Saturday repays more, a wet Monday repays less, and the total you owe never changes. For a restaurant with a predictable kitchen refit or a second site, a fixed-term loan or equipment finance can be cheaper; we tell you which before you sign.
The restaurant cash-flow calendar
Most UK restaurants make a third of their annual profit between mid-November and New Year's Eve, then spend January and February running on it. The VAT return for the December quarter is due on 7 February, right at the bottom of the trough, and it's the biggest return of the year because December was the biggest month. This is the single most common reason restaurant owners come to us: a tax bill that's really a timing problem, not a profitability problem.
A cash advance taken in late January and repaid as a percentage of card takings clears itself through the Easter and summer trade. Because the holdback is a percentage, the February repayments are small; by July they're larger and the balance drops fast. That's the opposite of a bank loan, whose fixed monthly payment is the same in February as in July.
What we look at for restaurants and takeaways
The four things our underwriters read first. None of them is a business plan.
We want to see the weekly rhythm. A room that does 60% of its card takings Thursday to Saturday is normal; one whose Saturdays have halved since the summer tells a different story.
A 40% to 50% drop is normal for a town-centre restaurant. We size the holdback so the January remittances are still comfortable.
Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats pay by bank transfer, not through the terminal, so a takeaway doing most of its trade on apps may suit a working-capital facility sized on bank turnover instead.
Weekly supplier direct debits plus quarterly rent are the two things that break a restaurant's month. If rent falls on the 25th and the big brewery invoice on the 1st, we'll avoid funding that lands you in the middle of both.
How it works
Four steps, with the timings we actually work to.
Apply online
Business name, what you do, roughly what goes through the till, the amount and what it's for. No credit search at this stage.
A specialist calls you back
Confirms it's a fit, tells you which product suits the numbers and what it would typically cost. If it isn't a fit, you hear that now.
Decision in writing
Send six months of bank statements (open banking takes under a minute), card statements if you take cards, and photo ID. The offer shows the amount, the total to repay and how it's collected.
Funds in your account
E-sign, and the money goes to the business account. Repayments start as agreed.
A worked example
| Monthly card takings (Dec) | £58,000 |
| Monthly card takings (Jan) | £31,000 |
| Advance | £28,000 |
| Factor rate | 1.25 |
| Total to repay | £35,000 |
| Cost of funding | £7,000 |
| Collected as | 12% of daily card takings |
| £1,000 card day in Feb | £120 remitted |
| £2,200 card day in July | £264 remitted |
| Cleared in about | 8 months at these takings |
Illustrative figures using typical market terms; not a real customer. Your offer depends on your trading and our assessment.
Eligibility
- A UK limited company or LLP (the entity that holds the lease and the card terminal)
- Trading six months or more at the current site
- £10,000 a month or more through the card terminal, or equivalent bank turnover for delivery-heavy takeaways
- A UK business bank account in the company's name
- A director who can provide photo ID and six months of bank and card statements
- Businesses in administration, a CVA, or with an unresolved winding-up petition
- Takeaways and restaurants whose card takings have fallen by more than half year-on-year and are still falling
- A unit that has changed hands in the last six months, unless the new owner has traded it since
Which product fits which restaurant problem
| Problem | Best fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| VAT bill in February | Merchant cash advance | Repays itself through spring and summer trade; small remittances in the thin months |
| Kitchen refit, new extraction, pizza oven | Asset finance or cash advance | Equipment can be financed on its own with the kit as security; a refit of the room is usually a cash advance |
| Second site: deposit, fit-out, first stock | Expansion funding | Staged drawdown, repayments shaped around the new site's opening |
| Takeaway with 70% of sales on delivery apps | Working capital facility | App payouts go to the bank, not the terminal, so we size on bank turnover |
| Pre-Christmas stock and staffing | Short-term finance | 3 to 4 months, cleared from December takings |
What restaurants & takeaways use it for
Personal guarantees, the lease and your credit score
Three things restaurant owners ask us. The director gives a personal guarantee, as with all unsecured UK business funding; there is no charge on your home and no charge on the lease, but if the company can't repay, the director is responsible. We don't take security over the premises and we don't need the landlord's consent. And the enquiry runs no credit search; we assess the business on its card and bank statements, and only run a search at offer stage with your consent, which we tell you about first.
A direct lender, in plain terms
Our own underwriters. Your file isn't sold on to a panel or passed around a market; the people who assess it are the people who fund it.
The total on your offer, nothing before funds are released. No application fee, no broker commission built into your price.
Finance to UK limited companies and LLPs for business purposes is not regulated consumer credit. The legal name of the funding entity is on every offer document.
Questions from restaurants & takeaways
How much can a restaurant borrow?
Typically around one month of card takings, from £5,000 to £500,000. A 40-cover restaurant taking £45,000 a month through the terminal would usually be looking at £35,000 to £55,000. Strong December-to-January resilience can push that higher.
I only opened last year. Can I still apply?
Yes, from six months of trading at the current site. We don't need accounts or a business plan; six months of card and bank statements is enough.
Most of my takings are on Deliveroo and Just Eat. Does that count?
Delivery platforms pay by bank transfer, not through your card terminal, so they don't count as card takings. They do count as bank turnover, and we size working-capital facilities on that instead. Tell us the split and we'll point you at the right product.
Can I use it for the VAT bill?
Yes, and it's the most common use. Apply in the last week of January, clear the bill on 7 February, repay through the spring from card takings.
What if January is terrible?
The holdback is a percentage of card takings, so a bad month means smaller remittances, not a missed payment. The total never increases. That's the point of the structure.
Do you fund restaurants with a prior cash advance?
If one is running and a portion has been repaid, we can consolidate it into a single facility, which usually means less coming out each day. We won't stack a second advance on top of a first.
Does the landlord need to agree?
No. We take no security over the premises or the lease.
Can I finance kitchen equipment separately?
Yes. Ovens, extraction, refrigeration and dishwashers can be put on hire purchase or lease with the equipment itself as security, usually at a lower cost than a cash advance. Ask for both and compare.
What do you need from me?
Six months of business bank statements (open banking takes a minute), six months of card terminal statements, and photo ID for a director. That's all.
Do you fund cafés and coffee shops as well?
Yes, on the same basis. A coffee shop taking £15,000 a month on cards is a typical customer.
Other trades we fund
Products mentioned on this page
See what your business could be offered
Two minutes to tell us about the business. A funding specialist calls you back, usually the same working day, with a straight answer.