Reward Finance Group has received a £40m investment from Foresight Group.

The investment will double the amount of funds available for the company to lend to SMEs.

In the year ending February 2017, Reward advanced funds totalling £84 million and the year-end loan book stood at £40m, up 25 percent on the previous year. Corresponding income grew £7.56m and pre-tax profit was £3.5m.

Tom Flannery, Reward’s joint managing director, said: “This is a significant step forward in the short history of Reward Finance Group Ltd. While we have been growing the business with substantial loan facilities provided by our ultimate parent since our inception in 2011, we have been looking for a senior debt funding facility to take the business on to the next level.

“Amy Crofton and the Foresight team have an in-depth understanding of the UK alternative funding market, and really grasped that no one deal is the same as the next, when lending to SMEs. Foresight therefore tailor-made the loan note facility to make it a truly bespoke funding solution and well suited to our business needs.”

Amy Crofton, Foresight Investment manager, added: “Reward Finance Group has an exceptionally strong track record of profitable growth. We have known the business for some time and have been impressed by its development over the last few years. Working with the Reward team, we structured a flexible debt facility that will provide substantial new capital resources to promote the ongoing success of the company.”