Shawbrook vs Close Brothers Asset Finance Comparison

Comparing Shawbrook Asset Finance and Close Brothers Asset Finance can help UK businesses understand how two specialist lenders approach funding for equipment, vehicles and other business critical assets. Both operate under established UK banking groups and focus on structured asset based facilities rather than simple overdrafts or unsecured term loans, although each has its own product mix and target customer profile based on Shawbrook's business lending pages and Close Brothers' asset finance overview. This guide looks at their products, how repayments typically work and what type of business each lender may suit, using only information that can be verified from official and reputable sources as of 2026. It is written for SME owners, finance directors and brokers comparing asset finance options at a high level rather than for personal or consumer borrowing. By the end, you should be clearer on which lender is more aligned with your sector, deal size and preferred way of structuring security against business assets.

1. Products and terms at a glance

Both Shawbrook and Close Brothers are UK headquartered specialist lenders that concentrate on secured business finance, including various forms of asset finance. However, they package and describe their products differently.

Shawbrook Asset Finance, structure and focus

Shawbrook is a specialist bank that provides finance to SMEs, real estate investors and consumers based on its corporate overview. Within business lending, it offers asset focused facilities through its Assets and Infrastructure and Asset Based Lending teams. The Assets and Infrastructure pages state that Shawbrook provides funding to finance acquisition of business critical assets and equipment across sectors including manufacturing, transport and infrastructure based on its assets and infrastructure overview. It also offers Asset Based Lending facilities that use receivables, inventory, property and plant and machinery to support working capital and strategic acquisitions based on its asset based lending product page.

Shawbrook describes its Asset Based Lending as suitable for established mid market UK businesses requiring flexible multi asset facilities, typically combining invoice discounting with term loans secured on assets such as machinery and property based on the same ABL page. The bank also continues to offer unsecured business loans via intermediaries, which can be used alongside asset based facilities, but those sit in a different product family based on its unsecured business loans broker page. Public communications in 2025 confirm that Shawbrook paused new applications for some asset finance facilities in January 2025 in order to focus on product expansion, while continuing to support existing customers, based on a January 2025 market update and its own news article on asset finance milestones. As a result, the precise configuration of its asset finance offering may continue to change and availability varies.

Close Brothers Asset Finance, structure and focus

Close Brothers Asset Finance is the asset finance division of Close Brothers Limited, part of Close Brothers Group plc, a UK specialist banking group based on the group "what we do" page and the asset finance about page. Close Brothers states that it provides a range of flexible funding options for UK SMEs, including hire purchase, leasing and refinancing, enabling businesses to purchase new equipment or refinance existing assets based on its asset finance home page and the group asset finance overview. Its sector list includes manufacturing, transport, construction, engineering, agriculture and renewables, with specialist industry teams based on its "why choose us" page.

Close Brothers also publishes explainer pages on specific structures such as hire purchase, which it describes as a way to acquire an asset while paying in instalments over an agreed term, with the option to own the asset at the end based on its hire purchase guide. For finance leases, it explains that the customer can use an asset without buying it outright, typically paying rentals over an agreed period based on its finance lease product page. These products sit alongside refinancing, where existing unencumbered assets are used to raise capital based on its "what is asset finance" explainer.

High level comparison of product scope

2. Costs and repayments in practice

Neither lender publishes a full rate card for all asset finance products as at 2026, and pricing is described as subject to eligibility, asset type and deal structure based on Close Brothers' explainer and Shawbrook's ABL page. Where indicative fees or base rates appear in broker documents, they are often for specific partner channels and can change, so this section uses illustrative examples and labels them as such. Actual costs vary.

How asset finance pricing typically works

Close Brothers states that products and services are subject to eligibility, status, terms and conditions, which implies that pricing is individually underwritten based on its why choose us page. Its hire purchase guide notes that repayments are made in instalments over an agreed timescale, which for UK business customers generally means a fixed or variable interest rate plus any documentation or option to purchase fees, although exact figures are not provided on the public page based on its hire purchase explanation.

Shawbrook's asset based lending content emphasises tailored facilities, with funding lines secured against multiple classes of asset and structured around covenants and borrowing bases rather than a single headline interest rate based on its ABL information. The bank's other business lending pages show that it uses a Shawbrook Base Rate for some property products and charges arrangement fees, but those references do not directly disclose pricing for asset finance and ABL, so exact rates and fees are not publicly specified based on its buy to let mortgage page and a 2025 broker guide that may not apply to asset products based on an external product guide. For asset based lending, therefore, pricing varies.

Illustrative comparison of cost drivers

The table below highlights the typical factors that influence overall cost for each lender, without quoting specific rates.

Worked example 1, illustrative hire purchase with Close Brothers

The following example is illustrative only. It is designed to show how repayments can be structured, not to indicate actual pricing, which varies.

• A manufacturing SME finances a £200,000 piece of machinery via hire purchase with Close Brothers.
• The business agrees a 5 year term with fixed monthly instalments.
• The agreement includes a small documentation fee at inception and an option to purchase fee at the end, consistent with how hire purchase is usually structured in the UK, as described broadly by Close Brothers based on its hire purchase guidance.

On a purely illustrative basis, if the total repayable amount over 5 years were £240,000 including all interest and fees, the average monthly repayment would be £4,000. In practice, the exact monthly payment would depend on the actual interest rate, any deposit paid and the timing of fees.

Worked example 2, illustrative asset based lending with Shawbrook

This example is also illustrative only, because Shawbrook does not publish standard pricing for asset based lending and each facility is bespoke.

• An established engineering business arranges an asset based lending facility with Shawbrook.
• The facility combines a receivables line of £1 million, secured on eligible invoices up to a certain advance rate, and a £500,000 term loan secured on plant and machinery based on the typical ABL structures described on its ABL product page.
• The receivables line is revolving, so interest is charged only on funds drawn and repaid as the borrowing base changes.
• The term loan is repaid over 4 years in regular instalments, with a margin over a base rate and an arrangement fee, but the exact margin and fees vary.

If, purely illustratively, the receivables line were drawn to £600,000 for six months of the year and £400,000 for the other six months and the term loan had level annual repayments of £125,000 of principal plus interest, the business would experience a mix of variable working capital funding costs and predictable fixed asset amortisation. Actual interest costs would depend on margins, covenants and utilisation.

Using tools to estimate repayments

Because neither lender offers a public business loan repayment calculator for all products, many SMEs use independent tools to estimate affordability. Funding Agent provides guidance assets such as its general pages on working capital loans and its definition of asset based lending to help contextualise how repayments might behave compared with unsecured loans or overdrafts. Businesses should stress test different rate and term assumptions before committing to either lender.

3. Speed and service

Public material from both lenders emphasises relationship driven service rather than automated instant decisions, and specific approval times are not published, so time to decision varies.

Shawbrook

Shawbrook describes itself as a specialist bank that "combines deep specialist knowledge, innovative technology and a human touch" based on its about us page. For business lending, it highlights that it works closely with brokers and customers to create bespoke solutions rather than offering one size fits all funding, including structuring asset based facilities for complex situations based on its ABL overview. The bank's unsecured business loan campaigns for brokers promote fast and frictionless processes such as assisted auto decisioning and same day payouts for qualifying unsecured loan customers, but those claims relate to unsecured loans and cannot be assumed for asset finance based on its unsecured loan campaign page.

The 2025 pause in new asset finance applications for some flow business suggests the bank has been reconfiguring its processes and product range based on the external announcement. For current time frames in 2026, the only safe statement is that deal timelines vary depending on facility complexity, collateral review and legal work.

Close Brothers

Close Brothers emphasises its local specialist teams and long term relationships with clients, describing how it supports various industries with tailored funding and sector knowledge based on its why choose us page. Its asset finance explainer notes that it can help businesses structure repayments around cash flow by choosing appropriate terms and residual values for leases, but it does not publish standard turnaround times for approvals or payouts based on its explainer. Group material for Close Brothers more broadly, including its business model documents, refers to maintaining disciplined underwriting and risk management, which naturally affects speed based on its 2025 business model document.

In practice, smaller hire purchase or leasing deals secured on standard assets are typically simpler than large multi asset ABL facilities and so can often be executed faster, but exact time frames with Close Brothers still vary by case.

4. Who each lender suits

Both lenders can serve a broad range of SMEs, but their sweet spots differ.

Shawbrook, best fit

• Established mid market companies with turnover and asset bases large enough to support multi asset facilities, as this is the core focus described for its Asset Based Lending products based on its ABL page.
• Businesses needing a mix of working capital and term loan funding in one facility, for example combining invoice discounting with term loans secured on equipment and property, which is how Shawbrook positions its ABL structures based on its product description.
• Companies undergoing events such as acquisitions, management buy outs or ownership transitions where asset based lending can support a leveraged transaction, aligning with Shawbrook's broader business lending offering for events like management buy outs based on its management buy out finance page.

Because Shawbrook is a regulated UK bank providing a wide set of products, it may also be attractive to businesses wanting a banking relationship that spans property finance and business lending, although that is more relevant to the wider organisation than specifically to asset finance based on its main website.

Close Brothers, best fit

• SMEs looking to acquire specific assets such as vehicles, machinery or production equipment using hire purchase or leasing rather than broad borrowing bases, in line with Close Brothers' emphasis on asset specific facilities based on its asset finance homepage.
• Businesses with unencumbered equipment or vehicles that wish to refinance those assets to release cash, reflecting its refinancing offering based on its explainer.
• Firms valuing sector expertise, for example in construction, manufacturing or agriculture, because Close Brothers organises its teams by industry and promotes local specialist knowledge based on its why choose us page.

Close Brothers, as a subsidiary of Close Brothers Limited which is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority, also appeals to businesses that prioritise long established UK institutions based on its FCA register entry and its fixed income investor information.

5. How to apply

Shawbrook application routes

For business lending including asset based facilities, Shawbrook typically works via direct relationship teams and professional intermediaries. Its business pages invite customers and brokers to contact relationship directors to discuss requirements rather than providing a fully online application form for ABL based on its ABL page. For unsecured business loans, Shawbrook explicitly targets introducers, describing features such as assisted auto decisioning and same day payouts for customers that meet criteria, with applications routed via approved brokers based on its broker product page.

Businesses considering Shawbrook for asset based lending can therefore expect an enquiry and proposal process involving detailed information on trading history, financial statements and asset schedules. This aligns with general industry practice described by bodies such as the British Business Bank, which notes that asset based lending usually requires lenders to analyse receivables ledgers and inventory as collateral based on its guidance on asset based lending.

Close Brothers application routes

Close Brothers Asset Finance promotes both direct and broker led access. Its site encourages businesses to connect with local asset finance specialists through online enquiry forms and dedicated sector pages based on its home page and its why choose us section. For broker intermediated business, its sister operation Close Brothers Broker Solutions outlines product types and expects brokers to present deals with supporting information such as asset details, financial accounts and customer background based on its hire purchase explainer for brokers.

In both cases, applications involve standard underwriting for secured business finance: credit checks, review of financial statements and assessment of the asset to be funded. Close Brothers stresses that all products are subject to eligibility, status and terms and conditions based on its general explainer, which indicates that approval is not guaranteed and that businesses must satisfy its risk criteria.

Complaints and support channels

Each lender publishes clear complaint handling procedures. Shawbrook directs business customers to its complaints process, which includes telephone, email and postal contact details and outlines how complaints are investigated and when customers can refer to the Financial Ombudsman Service, based on its complaints page. Close Brothers Asset Finance customers are directed to complaint contact details via Close Brothers Limited, which also sets out timelines for acknowledgement and resolution and refers eligible complainants to the Financial Ombudsman Service based on the group complaints page. In both cases, these procedures reflect UK regulatory expectations for complaint handling.

6. Final verdict

On the information publicly available as of 2026, both Shawbrook and Close Brothers are credible options for UK SMEs seeking secured business funding against assets, but they occupy different positions in the market. Shawbrook focuses more on structured asset based lending facilities for mid market businesses and complex situations, while Close Brothers provides more traditional hire purchase, leasing and refinancing for a wide base of SMEs. Pricing, eligibility and service levels are all bespoke, so the most appropriate lender will depend on your specific asset mix, funding need and appetite for a more complex facility.

Choose A if:

• Your business is mid market in scale with a diverse asset base spanning receivables, inventory, machinery and property.
• You want a single asset based lending facility that can fund working capital and term debt together rather than separate equipment loans.
• You are planning an event such as an acquisition, management buy out or ownership transition where structured asset based funding can support the transaction.
• You prefer to work directly with a UK bank that provides a broader suite of business and property finance products alongside asset based lending.

Choose B if:

• You are an SME that primarily needs to fund specific assets like vehicles, plant or machinery on a hire purchase or lease basis.
• You hold unencumbered equipment or vehicles and want to refinance them to release capital while continuing to use the assets.
• You value sector specific relationship managers with experience in industries such as manufacturing, construction, transport or agriculture.
• You prefer asset specific agreements with fixed instalments or rentals that can be aligned to projected cash flow.

7. Sources

• Shawbrook about us
• Shawbrook assets and infrastructure overview
• Shawbrook asset based lending product page
• Shawbrook unsecured business loans for brokers
• Shawbrook management buy out finance
• Shawbrook hits £50m milestone in asset finance
• Shawbrook pauses asset finance applications, Yahoo Finance
• Shawbrook buy to let mortgage base rate illustration
• Close Brothers Asset Finance, asset finance for UK SMEs
• Close Brothers Asset Finance about us
• Close Brothers Asset Finance why choose us
• Close Brothers explainer, what is asset finance
• Close Brothers hire purchase guide
• Close Brothers Broker Solutions finance lease guide
• Close Brothers Group asset finance overview
• Close Brothers Group, what we do
• Close Brothers, our business model 2025
• Close Brothers Limited overview for investors
• Close Brothers Limited FCA register entry
• Shawbrook complaints process
• Close Brothers complaints information
• British Business Bank, asset based lending guidance
• UK Finance, Invoice Finance and Asset Based Lending Code 2025
• Impact Packaging, Shawbrook product guide August 2025