Growth facilities are structured individually. Everything below describes the shape of each instrument; the amount, rate, covenants and security are agreed case by case and set out in a facility agreement.
What separates growth from working capital
Working capital funds the gap between paying and being paid. Growth facilities fund a change in the size or shape of the business, and are repaid out of what that change produces.
| Working capital | Growth facility | |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Bridging a timing gap | Funding an expansion, acquisition or asset |
| Term | 3 to 24 months | Typically 2 to 7 years |
| Repaid from | Ordinary trading receipts | The returns the investment generates |
| Assessment | Cash flow quality and conduct | The business case, plus cash flow and covenants |
| Security | General or debtor charge | Structured: assets, shares, guarantees, or a combination |
| Documentation | Facility letter | Full facility agreement with covenants and reporting |
The facilities
Acquisition finance
Funding to buy a business or a controlling stake, structured around the combined cash flow rather than either party alone.
How it is assessedExpansion capital
New sites, new markets or a step change in headcount, drawn in tranches against agreed milestones.
How it is assessedCapital expenditure
Plant, fit-out and major equipment, with the term matched to the useful life of what it buys.
Equipment financeRefinancing and consolidation
Replacing a patchwork of facilities with one structure, usually to release covenant headroom or reduce cost.
Compare with working capitalStructured and tranched facilities
A committed limit released in stages as conditions are met, so you are not paying for capital before you need it.
The deployment processMulti-entity facilities
One structure spanning several entities in a group, with borrowing and security arranged to match the hierarchy.
Global EntityCovenants and what they mean for you
A growth facility comes with covenants. They are not a formality: they are the conditions on which the money stays available, and breaching one has real consequences.
- Financial covenants
- Tests such as leverage, interest cover and minimum cash, measured on a set cycle against defined figures.
- Information covenants
- What you must send us and by when: management accounts, filed accounts, and a compliance certificate.
- Negative covenants
- Things you agree not to do without consent, such as granting further security, disposing of key assets or changing the group structure.
- Events of default
- What allows us to review or withdraw the facility. Always read this section in full before signing.
- Cure rights
- Where a breach can be fixed, typically by an injection of equity, and how many times that is permitted.
Tell us before you breach, not after
A forecast breach raised early is usually a conversation about a waiver. The same breach discovered by us in your accounts is a much shorter conversation.
How the cost is built
| Component | What it is |
|---|---|
| Margin | The rate over the reference rate, set by the risk and the structure. |
| Arrangement fee | Charged on the committed amount at the outset. |
| Commitment fee | On the undrawn portion of a committed facility. |
| Non-utilisation fee | Where a facility is agreed and materially unused. |
| Monitoring costs | Independent reviews or valuations where the structure requires them. |
| Legal costs | Documentation and security registration, disclosed before you proceed. |
Every component that applies to your facility is set out in the term sheet before the agreement is drafted.
Documents you may also need
How We Deploy Capital
From first conversation to drawdown: what happens at each stage, what we need from you, how long it takes and what most often causes delay.
Working CapitalWorking Capital Facilities
Revolving credit, invoice finance, stock funding and short-term loans — which one fits which problem, and what each actually costs.
Business CheckingGlobal Entity
Institutional infrastructure for groups: multi-currency settlement, cross-entity visibility, structured limits and a dedicated CFO contact.
This document was last updated on 1 August 2026. We publish the current version here at all times; superseded versions are available on request.
If anything on this page is unclear, write to us and we will explain it.