The awards, which recognise the role of the finance community in supporting the growth ambitions of SMEs across the UK, were held at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London and hosted by Claudia Winkleman.

LendingCrowd was recognised for its “best-in-class digital platform, transparency, as well as ample resources for both borrowers and lenders”.

Commenting, LendingCrowd founder and CEO Stuart Lunn said: “To be named Best P2P Business Lender is testament to the significant strides we have made since our launch in 2014. LendingCrowd exists to help alleviate the funding gap facing the UK’s vital community of SMEs, and we’re delighted to have received this recognition at the Growth Finance Awards.”

Guy Tolhurst, managing director of Intelligent Partnership, the company behind the awards, said: “Just to be recognised as a finalist is a great achievement in itself, but to take home a prize is a truly impressive accolade. I look forward to next year’s event and continuing to educate growing businesses about the wide variety of financial options that are available to them.”