Growth Street is pressing ahead with its mission to “transform the business overdraft” following a £10 million funding round, according to its CEO, writes Jane Connolly.

The round was led by existing investors Merian Chrysalis Investment Company – which led a £7.5 million round earlier this year – and Arts Alliance.

Growth Street provides a flexible overdraft-style line of credit between £25,000 and £2 million to British SMEs. The company is now valued at £47.5 million, an increase of £20 million since the last funding round.

The funds will be used to improve the speed and quality of its unique credit decision systems, which are powered by data integrations with accounting software and open banking.

Institutional investors will be added to diversify Growth Street’s debt funding base and the company will also look to extend the sales team’s presence in the Midlands and North of England.

Greg Carter, CEO and co-founder of Growth Street, says the investment will accelerate the company’s mission to help businesses grow.

“There’s no two ways about it – the banks are failing businesses: they have failed to innovate, failed to integrate and, fundamentally, failed to provide SMEs with sufficient capital to grow,” he says.

“Since the financial crash of 2008, the banks have dialled back their overdraft volumes by over 40%. In that same time, the number of UK SMEs has risen 30%. The UK has to find a way to plug this gap and I’m excited that Growth Street can play a part in that process.”

To date, Growth Street has facilitated £100 million of borrowing through its platform.

Source: https://www.bankingtech.com/2019/06/growth-street-receives-10m-funding-round/