This is one of the most-searched questions in business borrowing, and the honest answer surprises people: with Credicorp there is no fixed minimum credit score you must clear to get a business loan. We do not run your company through a single number and stamp it pass or fail. We assess the business as a whole — how it trades, how its bank account behaves, and what its business credit file shows — and ask one practical question: can this company comfortably repay this amount on this schedule?
Why there is no single "minimum score"
A business credit score is genuinely useful, but it is one input, not a gate. It also is not a single standardised figure: each business credit reference agency uses its own scale and model, so the same company can score differently with Experian Business, Creditsafe and Equifax Business. There is no industry-wide threshold a company must beat. For how those ratings are built and why they differ, see how a business credit score works and business credit reference agencies explained.
Because the score is just one signal, a strong picture in one area can balance a weaker one in another. A healthy, well-run bank account can offset a thin or middling credit file; steady trading income can outweigh a quiet recent month. No single factor passes or fails on its own.
What we actually assess — the company, not a number
We assess the company, because the company is the borrower and we take no personal guarantee. The assessment draws on four things working together:
| What we look at | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Company and director affordability | Whether the repayments fit comfortably alongside the business's normal outgoings — the central question, ahead of any score. |
| Trading history | How long the company has traded and how steadily. We look for a short but healthy recent record rather than a long or large one. |
| Business credit reference data | How the company has managed credit with other creditors, and any adverse markers against the business itself. |
| Bank-account behaviour (Open Banking) | Money in, money out and how the account is run over recent months — shared by read-only Open Banking or by uploading statements. |
For the full picture of how these combine, read what information goes into a lending decision and what an affordability assessment looks at.
How we handle a thin or young company file
A newer company, or one that has not yet built much of a business credit history, does not have a "bad" file — it has a thin one. A short credit history is not an automatic decline. Where the file is light, the company's bank-account behaviour carries more of the weight: regular income, an account that is not constantly at its limit, and an absence of returned payments tell us a great deal that a young credit file cannot yet. This is exactly why connecting your business bank account by read-only Open Banking gives the most accurate, up-to-date view — and why a young company with a healthy account can still be approved. Provided the business has been trading long enough and the borrowing is genuinely affordable, a thin file is something we work with, not against.
The soft check does not mark the director's personal credit file
People worry that searching for a business loan will leave a footprint on their own credit record. It will not. We run a business credit check on the company, and the identity check we carry out on the director is a verification and anti-money-laundering step — not a personal credit search. We do not record this loan, or the application for it, against the director's personal consumer credit file with Experian, Equifax or TransUnion, and it will not show up when you next apply for a personal mortgage, card or loan.
Applying is a soft, business-side assessment of the company. It does not mark the director's personal credit file, and looking into whether you qualify costs nothing and is never held against a future application. See whether applying affects your personal credit file and what data credit reference agencies receive.
So, what do you actually need?
Rather than a magic number, focus on the things that genuinely move a decision: a business that has been trading for at least six months, a UK business bank account run in a healthy way, borrowing for a genuine business purpose, and an amount that is comfortable against the company's cash flow. Get those right and a middling — or thin — credit score is rarely the obstacle people fear. If parts of the picture are weaker, we may offer less than you asked for rather than decline, and a clean repayment record can mean more becomes available over time.
Because this is lending to a company for business purposes, it sits outside FCA consumer-credit regulation under Article 60B of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) Order 2001, and is not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or the FSCS. For the principles behind how we assess, read how we lend.
See also: Alternatives to short-term lending: overdraft, card, invoice finance, grants, Bridging loan, term loan, or credit facility: what's the difference?, Business finance options: a quick tour.