Time Finance Review: Products, Costs and Alternatives

Time Finance is a UK alternative finance provider that lends to small and medium-sized businesses, mainly through asset finance, invoice finance and unsecured or secured business loans. It tends to suit established SMEs that want a flexible funder outside the mainstream high street banks, particularly for equipment funding or releasing cash tied up in unpaid invoices.

This review explains how Time Finance works, what it looks for, how its pricing tends to be structured and where alternatives may serve you better. Greenwood Capital is a whole-of-market broker, not a lender, so the aim here is to give you the facts rather than steer you toward one name.

Who is Time Finance and who does it suit?

Time Finance plc is an AIM-listed, Bath-based finance group that provides funding to UK SMEs across several product lines. It is best known for asset finance and invoice finance, and it positions itself as a multi-product lender that can support a business as it grows.

It typically suits trading businesses that have been established for a period, have assets to fund or invoices to leverage, and want a funder that can look at the wider picture rather than a single credit score. Very early-stage startups and consumers looking for personal borrowing are generally not the target market.

Time Finance at a glance

How does Time Finance work and what are its products?

Time Finance operates as a multi-product lender, meaning it offers several distinct funding types rather than a single loan. The main lines are asset finance, invoice finance, business loans and asset-based lending, and a business can use one or combine several.

Asset finance

Asset finance is funding used to acquire equipment, vehicles or machinery, where the asset itself provides the security. Time Finance offers hire purchase and leasing structures, letting a business spread the cost of an asset over its useful life rather than paying up front. Refinance of assets you already own is also common, which releases cash from equipment on your balance sheet.

Invoice finance

Invoice finance is a facility that advances a percentage of the value of your unpaid sales invoices, so you receive most of the cash straight away instead of waiting for customers to pay. Time Finance provides both invoice factoring (where it also manages collections) and invoice discounting (where you retain control of your ledger). This suits businesses with a business-to-business sales ledger and long payment terms.

Business loans

Time Finance offers term loans for working capital, expansion or specific projects. These can be structured as secured or unsecured depending on the amount, the term and the strength of the business.

What are the eligibility requirements?

Time Finance generally lends to UK-registered businesses that are actively trading, with the exact criteria depending on the product. For secured business loans, the business needs at least two years of trading, the applicant must own property, and the facility is only available to businesses based in England or Wales. Elsewhere in the range, expect stronger appetite for established companies with a trading history, demonstrable turnover and either fundable assets or a business-to-business invoice ledger.

For asset finance, the key factors are usually the type, age and resale value of the asset, alongside the affordability shown in your accounts. For invoice finance, the focus shifts to the quality of your debtors, your payment terms and the reliability of your sales ledger.

Personal guarantees from directors are common in SME lending and Time Finance may require them, particularly on unsecured or higher-risk facilities. Adverse credit does not always rule you out, but it will affect the terms offered. Always confirm the current requirements directly, as criteria change.

How much does Time Finance cost?

Pricing at Time Finance is quoted individually rather than from a fixed public rate card, so the cost depends on your product, risk profile, security and term. This is normal for asset and invoice finance, where every facility is structured to the business.

As a general guide to how pricing tends to work:

• Asset finance is usually priced as a fixed monthly or quarterly payment over the term, with the effective rate reflecting the asset, deposit and your credit profile.
• Invoice finance typically carries a service fee (a percentage of turnover) plus a discount charge on the funds you draw, so the total cost moves with how much you use.
• Business loans generally carry an interest rate plus possible arrangement fees, with secured facilities usually priced more keenly than unsecured.

Rates vary by profile and security, so treat any figure you see online with caution and confirm the current terms and total cost with the lender or through a broker before you commit. Watch for arrangement fees, minimum term commitments and early settlement terms, as these affect the true cost.

What is the application process step by step?

Applying to Time Finance follows a fairly standard SME lending path, though the detail differs by product. In outline it works like this.

• Enquiry. You (or your broker) submit basic details about the business, the amount needed and the purpose.
• Product match. The funder confirms which product fits, for example asset finance for an equipment purchase or invoice finance for cash flow.
• Information gathering. You provide financial information such as accounts, bank statements, an aged debtor report for invoice finance, or asset details for asset finance.
• Underwriting. Time Finance assesses affordability, security and risk, and may request further clarification.
• Offer. You receive a proposal setting out the amount, structure, term and costs.
• Documentation and drawdown. Once you accept and sign, the facility is set up and funds or the asset are released.

How fast is Time Finance and what should you have ready?

Timescales range from a few days to a couple of weeks, driven largely by how quickly you supply information and how complex the facility is. Straightforward asset finance on a common, easily valued asset can move quickly, while a new invoice finance facility takes longer to set up because the sales ledger must be reviewed.

To speed things up, have the following ready:

• Up to date filed accounts and recent management figures
• Recent business bank statements
• Details of the asset (invoice, specification, supplier) for asset finance
• An aged debtors and creditors report for invoice finance
• Director details for any personal guarantee and identity checks

Worked scenario: funding a machinery purchase

Consider a Manchester engineering firm that has won a new contract and needs a CNC machine costing around £80,000 to fulfil it. Paying in cash would drain its working capital just as it needs to buy materials and take on staff.

Using asset finance, the business could spread the cost over the useful life of the machine, with the machine itself as the security. The monthly payment is fixed, so the firm can align repayments with the extra revenue the contract brings in. It keeps its cash free for materials and wages, and it may combine this with an invoice finance facility to release cash from the resulting sales invoices. This illustrates how a multi-product lender can layer facilities, though whether it is the best value option depends on comparing the market.

Time Finance pros and cons

Pros

• Multiple products under one roof, useful for growing businesses with mixed needs
• Strong focus on asset and invoice finance rather than a one-size loan
• Individually structured facilities that can flex to the business
• Considers established SMEs that the high street may pass over
• UK-listed provider with a defined SME focus

Cons

• No simple public rate card, so costs need to be quoted case by case
• Personal guarantees are commonly required
• Less suited to startups and very early-stage businesses
• Invoice finance can carry minimum terms and service fees that add up
• You will not know if it is competitive without comparing other lenders

How does Time Finance compare to the wider market?

Time Finance is one of several specialist SME funders, and the right choice depends on your product need, size and profile. Here is how it sits against three named alternatives.

Ultimate Finance

Ultimate Finance is a Bristol-based SME lender focused on invoice finance, asset finance and bridging loans. It has a strong reputation in invoice finance for smaller and growing businesses and is often cited for a service-led approach. If your primary need is cash flow funding against a sales ledger, it is worth comparing directly against Time Finance on advance rates, fees and minimum terms.

Close Brothers

Close Brothers is a long-established UK merchant banking group with a large asset finance and invoice finance operation. It tends to suit businesses that value the scale and stability of a bigger institution and may be strong on specialist asset classes. For larger or more complex asset finance requirements, Close Brothers is a credible alternative, though appetite and pricing still depend on your profile.

High street banks

Mainstream banks can offer competitively priced term loans and overdrafts, especially for businesses with strong accounts and an existing banking relationship. They are often cheaper on paper but slower and more conservative on criteria, so asset-rich or cash-flow-driven businesses sometimes find specialist lenders more flexible. Compare on both cost and likelihood of approval.

Specialist asset and invoice finance brokers

Rather than approaching one lender, many businesses use a whole-of-market broker to compare several funders at once. This is where Time Finance is genuinely the better choice for some businesses: if you value a single multi-product relationship covering asset, invoice and loan funding together, it can simplify things. For others, spreading facilities across specialists produces better pricing, which is exactly what comparing the market reveals.

Who is Time Finance best for, and who should look elsewhere?

Time Finance is best for established UK SMEs that need asset finance, invoice finance or a flexible business loan, and that value dealing with one multi-product funder as they grow. Businesses with fundable equipment or a solid business-to-business sales ledger are natural fits.

You should look elsewhere, or at least compare widely, if you are a very early-stage startup, if you need consumer or personal borrowing, or if you want the keenest possible price and are willing to split facilities across specialist lenders to get it. In every case, the only way to know whether Time Finance is competitive for you is to see it alongside the market.

Let Greenwood Capital compare the market for you

Greenwood Capital is a Manchester-based, whole-of-market finance broker. We can look at Time Finance alongside Ultimate Finance, Close Brothers and the wider lending market, then match your situation to funders that fit. This is general help to inform your decision, not financial advice.

Tell us what you are trying to fund and we will do the legwork of comparing options, so you can see where the strongest fit and value sit for your business. Get in touch to start the conversation.