One of the most common problems we hear from growing businesses is this: 'We're winning contracts, but we're always waiting to get paid.' It's a frustrating situation — you've done the work, raised the invoice, and now you're waiting 30, 60, or even 90 days while your own suppliers and staff still need paying.
Invoice finance solves this problem directly.
How does it work?
When you raise an invoice, instead of waiting for your customer to pay, you submit it to an invoice finance lender. They advance you up to 90% of the invoice value — typically within 24 hours. When your customer pays, the lender collects the balance and releases the remaining amount to you, minus their fee.
The result: your cash flow reflects when you do the work, not when your customer decides to pay.
Factoring vs invoice discounting — what's the difference?
There are two main types of invoice finance:
- Invoice factoring — the lender manages your credit control and collects payments from your customers directly. This is a disclosed arrangement, meaning your customers know a third party is involved.
- Invoice discounting — you retain control of your own credit control. Your customers pay you directly as normal. The facility is confidential.
Which is right for you depends on the size of your business, your preference for managing credit control, and whether confidentiality matters for your customer relationships.
Who uses invoice finance?
Invoice finance is particularly popular in construction, manufacturing, transport, and professional services — industries where payment terms are long and cash flow is tight. But it's used across almost every sector where businesses invoice other businesses (B2B).
Is it expensive?
Invoice finance is typically priced as a percentage of turnover plus a discount rate on funds advanced. For most businesses, the cost is more than offset by the value of having cash available immediately — particularly if it means you can take on more work, pay suppliers on time, or simply avoid the stress of a cash flow crisis.
If you'd like to understand whether invoice finance could work for your business, give us a call. We search multiple providers and can usually give you an indicative cost the same day.