Praetura Commercial Finance
Manchester-based specialist ABL lender offering invoice discounting, stock revolvers, and multi-asset facilities to UK SMEs, from sub-£1m working capital lines to £35m-plus MBO packages.
What they do
Praetura Commercial Finance is the sales finance arm of Praetura Lending, a North West-headquartered group with a combined loan book exceeding £500m. The core product set spans confidential invoice discounting, stock revolvers, plant and machinery term loans, property term loans, and cash flow term loans — structured as standalone facilities or blended ABL packages. The stated deal range runs from sub-£1m working capital lines to £35m structures enabling management buyouts and buy-ins. The business operates nationally, with relationship directors covering North West, Yorkshire, Midlands, South East, and Scotland, and draws wholesale funding from a dedicated £150m NatWest ABL facility and a £200m Barclays securitisation (the latter shared with sister company Zodeq).
Where they fit in a lower-mid-market raise
Praetura CF is well suited to UK lower-mid-market corporates where the balance sheet carries meaningful receivables, stock, or fixed assets that can underpin an ABL structure — particularly where a clearing bank has reached its appetite, the business is undergoing a change of ownership (MBO/MBI), or the borrower needs a lender willing to build a multi-asset package rather than a single-product line. Their published case studies cluster around £1.5m–£5m ABL facilities supporting buyouts and growth plans in manufacturing, distribution, engineering, food, and pharma. The relationship-led model — with sector-experienced directors taking the deal from origination through in-life management — suits situations where the story needs explaining rather than just modelling.
Where they are not the fit
Not a fit for businesses with no receivables or hard-asset base (i.e. pure services or IP-heavy models where ABL collateral is thin). Unlikely to be the right counterparty for very early-stage businesses without trading history, or for facilities above circa £35m where a larger clearing-bank ABL team or a syndicated structure is needed. Does not provide mezzanine, equity, or unsecured term debt.
On the record
Praetura Commercial Finance Limited incorporated 19 September 2016; Companies House number 10384014; registered at Barons Court, Manchester Road, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 1BQ; active as of last confirmation statement September 2025.
Praetura Lending's combined loan book exceeded £500m as of 2024, having more than trebled over three years; over 1,500 UK SMEs supported with £328m of funding in 2025 alone.
Praetura Commercial Finance — £500m loan book milestone press release
Praetura Commercial Finance and sister company Zodeq secured a £200m ABL securitisation facility from Barclays in 2024, dedicated to sales finance for UK SMEs.
Praetura's Sales Finance division secured a separate £150m back-to-back ABL facility from NatWest, with the group described as the only specialist finance company in the UK with two separate securitisation facilities from two major banks.
Stated deal range: from a £10,000 asset purchase to a £35m ABL package to enable an MBO or MBI; case studies include a £3.75m ABL for Lakes Showering Spaces MBO and a £1.4m facility for Double R (glass/roofing) management buy-in.
Sectors served include distribution, engineering, manufacturing, pharma, food, automotive, fitness, and recruitment (via Zodeq); national coverage with offices in Manchester, Wilmslow, Blackburn, and Milton Keynes.
Pro-Manchester — Praetura Commercial Finance loan book milestone article
Products offered by Praetura Commercial Finance: confidential invoice discounting, stock revolver, plant and machinery term loans, property term loans, and cash flow term loans.
Praetura Commercial Finance and Praetura Invoice Finance together grew their combined portfolio by 72.5% in 2024.
Praetura Commercial Finance — £500m loan book milestone press release
This profile is a curated reference note drawn from public sources, not financial advice or a recommendation. Appetite and terms change; a lender's fit for a given credit is established by approaching it, not inferred from a page.