Funding Circle says it has been “inundated” with broker enquiries on its small business lending proposition since exhibiting at the recent NACFB Expo in Birmingham.

Funding Circle brings together savers and investors to miss out banks and lend directly to small businesses. Since launching in August 2010, more than 15,000 investors have registered and £37 million lent to over 850 businesses.

“Funding Circle offers a powerful new commercial funding hub, which, from the responses we have had at the NACFB Expo, is exactly what the intermediary market has been calling for,” said Laura McMullen, head of sales at Funding Circle.

“Intermediaries now have an opportunity to generate the funding their clients need, quickly and with the minimum of bureaucratic obstacles.

“The environment of small business lending has needed a revolution for some time. By bringing together businesses seeking finance, through professional advisers, with investors looking for attractive returns, Funding Circle is driving innovation in the industry. With a business process guaranteed to deliver funding quickly and with the minimum of administrative wrangling, loan applications have soared.”

She added: “Competition for commercial finance has been stagnant for too long. Funding Circle not only provides vital liquidity for small businesses, but an application process light years ahead of the accepted snail paced process employed by traditional lenders.”