Ultimate Finance

Ultimate Finance: asset-based finance for businesses

Ultimate Finance is an independent lender specialising in asset-based finance, backed by the international private investment organisation Tavistock Group. With over twenty years' experience, the company presents itself as a financial partner that tailors its solutions to each business's needs, with the stated aim of supporting their growth ambitions and easing day-to-day cash flow pressures. According to its own figures, it has provided over £19 billion in funding to date.

Funding solutions

Ultimate Finance's product range covers various types of business finance, each with specific terms and limits:

• Invoice Finance: allows businesses to release cash tied up in invoices, with amounts up to £10 million. Includes the option of a cash flow loan up to £500,000 with a term of up to five years, a dedicated personal relationship manager, online portal access and the option to take out debtor protection or credit control. It is particularly aimed at the construction, recruitment and trade sectors.
• Asset Finance: facilitates investment in assets without the full upfront cost. Funds up to £750,000 per asset and up to £3 million per customer, with the option of a balloon payment up to £150,000, vehicles funded up to £200,000 (including VAT) and terms up to 84 months. Set-up can be completed within one working day. Offers hire purchase, leasing and refinance options.
• Bridging Finance: short-term funding for property transactions and other needs, with amounts up to £4 million and up to 75% loan-to-value (LTV). Covers residential and semi-commercial bridging loans for purchase, development exit and re-bridge. Funds up to 100% of the purchase price on below-market-value purchases and offers equity release options for development finish and refurbishment.
• Structured Finance: secures funding through a combination of assets, with amounts up to £10 million. Combines receivables, plant and machinery and/or property, with the option to add cash flow loans. Includes a dedicated deal team and a single point of contact for all facilities, with no restrictions on individual assets.
• Construction Finance: releases funds tied up in outstanding applications for payment, with up to £2 million. Features a personal relationship manager from the specialist construction team, online portal access and a rolling contract.
• Recruitment Finance: allows cash to be advanced against placements to pay wages on time, with up to £10 million. Includes the option of a cash flow loan up to £500,000 over five years, a personal relationship manager and access to RSM's Pay & Bill services. Rolling contract.
• Trade Finance: bridges the gap between paying suppliers and being paid by customers, with up to £1 million and up to 120 days' trade credit. Includes a personal relationship manager and a rolling contract.

Representative funding cases

The company documents completed deals across various sectors. These include a kitchen manufacturer that received £1.5 million in Invoice Finance to replace a restrictive facility and meet its turnover targets; a family agricultural contractor that obtained £160,000 in Asset Finance to acquire a tractor, a forage harvester and a rotary rake; and a property developer that received £1 million in Bridging Finance to complete 18 apartments that would later be let and transferred to a long-term buy-to-let mortgage.

Cases also include a developer that needed to refinance a previous facility to buy a commercial unit (£1.8 million in Bridging Finance); a designer and wholesaler that, following a change of ownership, accessed Invoice Finance and Purchase Finance for £350,000; a healthcare supplier that received £1.45 million in Invoice Finance to boost its cash flow; and a property developer that refinanced with a CBILS-backed bridging loan of £960,000 to navigate the impact of COVID-19.

Other deals include £200,000 in Construction Finance for a construction company that had exceeded its previous facility; £500,000 combined Invoice Finance and Trade Finance for a computer hardware reseller; £750,000 in Invoice Finance for a concrete supplier in recovery; £1 million in Structured Finance for the acquisition of an air conditioning and plumbing business; £240,000 in Asset Finance for a laundry; £270,000 in Bridging Finance for a developer's third deal; and £200,000 in Asset Finance for a scrap metal recycling company that needed two new machines.

Borrower profile and approach

Ultimate Finance describes itself as an independent lender with an open and dynamic approach, focused on long-term relationships. Its proposition combines sector expertise with flexible terms and personalised service. The company states it holds an "Excellent" rating from businesses and introducers, and offers the latter the option to register as introducers.