
Chair’s statement continued
Q&A
Ken discusses 2025’s
record profitability, the
evolution of our multi‑
product strategy, and how
we are driving long‑term
shareholder value.
Q
You joined Funding Circle at a
pivotal moment. What was it about
the business that attracted you?
A
What compelled me to join was the
clarity of the mission and the unique
infrastructure built to achieve it. We
exist to help small businesses get the
funds they need to run and grow their
businesses, and in doing so, we help
address a significant structural gap
in the SME lending market that
traditional banks have historically
underserved. It’s a hugely exciting
time to join the business as we
transition to a UK-focused, multi-
product model. By combining high
engagement products like FlexiPay
and card with our established Term
Loans, we are building a scalable
and sustainable business that better
serves our customers and drives
long-term shareholder value.
Q
2025 saw a significant increase
in profitability. How has the Board
balanced growth with the need for
rigorous risk management?
A
Delivering profit before tax of
£20.3 million in 2025, a substantial
increase from the previous year,
validates our strategy, but the Board
remains vigilant that growth does not
come at the expense of credit quality.
Our approach combines the speed
of innovation with prudent oversight.
While we are proud that 73% of loan
decisions are instant, enabling a
frictionless experience for SMEs, we
maintain a ‘human in the loop’ policy.
This ensures that while we leverage
AI to enhance decision quality
and effectiveness, we retain the
judgement necessary to navigate
complex credit environments with a
team of experienced underwriting
experts. To maintain this balance,
we have embedded Gen AI risk
management into our Enterprise
Risk Management (“ERM”) framework
and established structural oversight
through a Gen AI steering committee
(see page 58 for further information).
The Board’s priority is to ensure
our credit models remain resilient,
evidenced by our ability to deliver
robust returns to our platform
investors even through challenging
macroeconomic cycles.
Q
Shareholders are keen to
understand your approach to
capital allocation. Why did you
prioritise buybacks in 2025?
A
The Board continuously assesses how
to deploy capital to generate the best
value. In 2025, we expanded our share
buyback programme because we have
high confidence in the Group’s intrinsic
value and its cash-generative profile.
With unrestricted cash at healthy levels
and a market share price that does not
fully reflect the growth potential of our
platform, we determined that reinvesting
in our own business is an efficient use
of funds. With our Term Loans business
consistently generating cash, we
were able to continue the buyback
programme whilst preserving the
flexibility to invest in new products
and future growth opportunities.
Q
We are seeing a shift from ‘lending’
to a broader ‘borrow, pay later,
spend’ ecosystem. How does this
change the Board’s view of the
Company’s competitive set?
A
We are moving beyond simply
competing for loans to competing for
daily relevance. By expanding our
ecosystem to include ‘borrow, pay
later, and spend’, we have transformed
the frequency of our client interactions
from once every half hour to a
transaction every 38 seconds,
deepening customer relationships as
we meet more of their needs. We are
becoming a comprehensive financial
partner for SMEs, managing their daily
cash flow through FlexiPay and spend
through our Cashback card product.
This multi-product strategy not only
deepens customer loyalty, with over
80% of FlexiPay revenue coming from
repeat borrowers, but also diversifies
our revenue streams, making the
business model more resilient.
Q
Looking ahead, what is the Board’s
role in ensuring Funding Circle
stays at the forefront of the Gen
AI developments?
A
As we transition to becoming an
AI-native business in 2026 and
beyond, the Board’s role will focus on
the responsible implementation and
governance. We are already utilising
Gen AI to improve productivity,
accelerate software development
and enhance customer experience,
amongst other things. Looking ahead,
the focus is on deeper integration
throughout the business. The Board
must ensure that as we deepen the
use of AI, we also, in parallel, enhance
the rigorous security of our proprietary
data assets, which are the fuel for this
technology. We are investing in
learning and development to ensure
the entire team is AI fluent, and we are
equally focused on ensuring these
powerful tools are deployed
responsibly to solve real
customer problems.
Q
Funding Circle contributed
significantly to UK GDP and
job support in 2025. How
does the Board view the link
between social purpose and
financial performance?
A
The Board views the ‘S’ in ESG not
as a separate initiative, but as intrinsic
to our commercial success. In 2025
alone, our lending supported 117,000
jobs and contributed £7.9 billion to
GDP. When we look at a map of the
UK, we see pins in every corner of the
country, representing businesses we
have backed in all 650 parliamentary
constituencies. By acting as a
facilitator of economic growth, we
help create an environment in which
our customers can thrive, which
directly drives the financial returns
we deliver to our shareholders.
STRATEGIC REPORT CORPORATE GOVERNANCE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Funding Circle Holdings plc | Annual Report and Accounts 2025
08