How long does approval and funding usually take for food business finance?

Food business finance approval and funding typically takes 24 hours to 5 working days for fintech lenders, and 5 to 15 working days for bank lenders or larger facilities over £150,000. The fastest route is merchant cash advance against card-machine takings, often funded same-day to 48 hours by lenders like Capify or 365 Business Finance.

For a £25,000 working capital loan to a UK restaurant or cafe, expect: 24 hours for soft-search quote and indicative terms, 1 to 2 days for document submission (last 6 months of bank statements, most recent filed accounts, photo ID), 1 to 2 days for full credit underwriting and KYC, and same-day funds release once contracts are signed. Total: 4 to 5 working days end-to-end is standard. iwoca and Capify can compress this to 24 to 48 hours for established food businesses with clean credit.

For larger facilities, a £250,000 fit-out or expansion loan from a bank like Allica Bank or Aldermore takes longer. Allow 5 to 10 working days for indicative terms, 5 to 10 days for full underwriting (often committee-reviewed) and a further 3 to 5 days for legal completion if security is being taken. Total: 3 to 4 weeks end-to-end is realistic.

The key bottleneck is documentation, not lender speed. Pre-prepared accounts, bank statements and a one-page use-of-funds memo will typically save 2 to 3 working days. See how long does it take from enquiry to funds being released for the broader cross-sector view.