Shawbrook consolidates unsecured business lending under Playter brand in Commitment to UK SME Mid-Market
Shawbrook today announces that, with effect from 6 May 2026, all new unsecured business lending applications will be originated through Playter, the fintech lending platform it acquired in December 2025. The move marks a decisive step in Shawbrook’s strategy to build a market-leading brand portfolio dedicated to UK small and medium-sized enterprises, and specifically to the ambitious, established businesses that make up the ‘mid-market’ at the heart of the UK’s SME economy.
Shawbrook’s existing Unsecured Business Loan products, including its Professions Finance range, will transition to Playter, which simultaneously expands its product suite to include term loans from 3 months to 5 years. The result is a single, specialist brand capable of serving the full spectrum of unsecured SME lending needs: from short-term cashflow solutions and VAT funding to business expansion loans and working capital facilities.
A Specialist Brand Portfolio for the UK SME Lower Mid-Market
This consolidation is the next step in a deliberate brand portfolio strategy. With a combined SME loan book of approximately £4bn and an addressable market of close to £100bn, Shawbrook’s three specialist brands offer structured lending across the full SME growth journey – from fast-growth businesses accessing their first significant facility, to established enterprises requiring institutional-grade capital structures:
Playter: Unsecured Business Lending
The digital-first, AI-native platform for unsecured business lending. Built for established UK SMEs that need fast, flexible finance from VAT funding and cashflow management to working capital and business expansion. Playter combines speed and simplicity with sophisticated data-led underwriting, delivering credit decisions within 24 hours across its full product range.
ThinCats: Growth Acceleration Lending
The specialist lender for ambitious, scaling SMEs — typically founder-led or independent sponsor-backed businesses pursuing rapid growth, acquisition strategies or reinvestment.
Shawbrook — Scale & Institutional Partnership
The structured finance partner for larger, more established businesses with stable cash generation and meaningful scale, requiring senior facilities, blended asset and cashflow underwriting, and institutional-grade capital structures.
Together, these three brands provide coverage across the full £50k–£50m+ lending spectrum, with clear brand differentiation and a natural migration pathway for businesses as they scale. For brokers and advisers, this means a single group relationship capable of meeting virtually every secured and unsecured funding need their SME clients will ever present.
Powering Up Playter: Technology and Innovation at Scale
Since its founding in 2021, Playter has demonstrated that technology can materially improve how SMEs access finance. Its proprietary platform uses automated workflows and Open Banking integrations to convert complex data into clear, fast credit decisions with the ability to approve applications within 24 hours and deploy capital quickly.
Central to Playter’s broker proposition is ‘Ari’, its AI-powered broker hub, which allows commercial finance brokers to assess their client’s credit profile and submit applications rapidly and intuitively.
By unifying all of Shawbrook’s unsecured SME lending under the Playter brand, brokers gain a single, consistent and technologically sophisticated access point.
Backed by Shawbrook’s funding strength, distribution network and SME market expertise, Playter is now positioned to do more of what it does best, consistently and at scale. This means faster decisions on a wider range of products, a broader broker toolkit, and the confidence that comes from operating within a well-capitalised specialist bank.
“SMEs are the engine of UK growth, and they deserve a lending experience that matches their ambition. The lower mid-market, the ‘M’ in SME, is an enormously important and underserved segment, and Shawbrook has been building its capabilities here with real intent.
Bringing all of our unsecured lending under the Playter brand is the natural next step. Playter’s technology and proposition are purpose-built for growth-focused businesses that need fast, flexible finance. With Shawbrook’s scale and expertise behind it, Playter can now deliver that experience consistently and more broadly than ever. Alongside ThinCats and Shawbrook, we now have the depth and breadth to support ambitious UK businesses across the full growth journey, from their first unsecured facility through to institutional-grade structured finance.” Neil Rudge, chief banking officer, commercial, Shawbrook
“Playter was built on a simple belief: that SMEs and their brokers deserve better access to finance, faster, simpler and more tailored to how businesses actually work. Today that belief is backed by the breadth and depth of Shawbrook’s capabilities, funding and reach.
Consolidating Shawbrook’s unsecured lending into Playter means brokers now have one powerful, intelligent platform for the full range of their clients’ unsecured SME lending needs. We’ve got the means to give brokers and their clients the high-quality experience they’ve always enjoyed from Playter, now at scale and with consistency, certainty and confidence.” Jamie Beaumont, Founder & Managing Director, Playter
What This Means for Brokers
All new unsecured business lending applications, including Professions Finance, should be submitted through the Playter platform. Brokers already registered with Shawbrook for unsecured lending will receive direct communication with full details of the transition process.
The transition is designed to be smooth and controlled. Existing Shawbrook customers will continue to be fully serviced under current terms and contact channels. Cases already in the Shawbrook pipeline ahead of the cut-off will be completed on the terms agreed.
From launch, the expanded Playter platform will offer brokers access to:
- • Short-term cashflow loans and credit lines — Playter’s proven core products
- • Term loans for business investment and growth, up to 5 years
- • Professions Finance for legal, accounting and medical sector professionals
- • AI-assisted credit assessment and application through the Ari broker hub
- • Fast decisions, transparent processes and a dedicated broker support team