This increase reflects Reward’s swift expansion – the lender currently supports over 500 SMEs from six regional offices and has recently surpassed a £200m loan book milestone for the first time. Furthermore, several senior-level appointments have been made to enhance its regional UK presence.

Nick Smith, group managing director for Reward Finance Group, said: “This opportunity supports not only our business but also our clients in a challenging industry landscape.

“It emerges as a genuine positive for SMEs, who often find it difficult to secure funding from high street banks, especially while still recovering in a post-COVID climate, hit by rising inflation, interest rates and corporation tax. The support Foresight has provided over the last six years has been pivotal to our growth ambitions.

“This latest £50m increase, taking the total lending facility from Foresight to £180m, further solidifies our shared confidence and vision for the business and fuels our aspirations to expand even further – in the next three years, we aim to surpass £350m in our loan book.”

Amy Crofton, director at Foresight Group, commented: “We’re pleased to extend Reward’s credit line by an additional £50 millmon. The business has not only achieved 12 years of continuous growth but has also proven to be indispensable to numerous UK based SMEs.

“Reward’s responsible, common-sense approach to lending has been a cornerstone of its success to date and is integral to ensuring firms secure the working capital needed for growth and job creation.

“We’re delighted to support Reward in offering even greater speed and flexibility in providing funding solutions to firms, especially in an increasingly challenging business environment.”

David Harrop, group finance director at Reward, added: “The £50m increase is not only a major development for the business, allowing us to further enhance our lending capabilities, but also a significant boost for SMEs needing to borrow amidst prevailing economic and political uncertainty.

“We’ve invested significant effort into regional expansion over the last two years, and the latest investment from Foresight is a recognition of our progress.

“In this period alone, we’ve transitioned from being a highly-recognised lender in Yorkshire and the North West, to financing the growth ambitions of SMEs across nearly all corners of the UK.”