HSBC digital bank Kinetic lends over £2m to small businesses

HSBC Kinetic, the banking app for small businesses, has lent over £2m in the first three months of going live as the first digital bank to launch small business loans. This milestone comes as Kinetic turns two years old this week.

Entrepreneurs and business leaders are using the loans to purchase stock (33 per cent), consolidate debt (28.5 per cent), for working capital (15 per cent) and to purchase furniture and fittings for their premises (13 per cent).

The number of small businesses in the UK has increased by 60 per cent over the last 20 years according to the Department of Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS ,2022). In the face of a cost of living crisis, and as we continue to recover from the pandemic, many entrepreneurs are looking to start new businesses or ‘side-hustles’.

46 per cent of Brits are now making a second income from a side-hustle, with their contribution to the economy estimated to be worth around £346bn according to Airtasker.

Peter McIntyre, head of Kinetic and Business Banking, HSBC UK, said: “HSBC Kinetic is already helping thousands of small businesses across the UK transform the way they do business. We’re delighted to be amongst the first digital only banks to offer small business loans, and we are already seeing businesses borrow and use the funds to grow.

“With more and more entrepreneurs starting businesses or developing side-hustles, we’ve also teamed up with some great partners to take the stress out of starting and running a business. We’re proud to be putting more of the bank in customers’ pockets, by enabling them to manage their finances on their phones whenever and wherever they want.”

HSBC Kinetic aims to help “forward-thinking businesses work smarter” at a time when they have never needed to be more agile. With fast application times, 60 per cent of loans are processed within just a few moments, providing startup funding or fast funding of up to £10k to grow these business ventures.