How it works

• Entry to the Commercial Lender Awards 2026 is open only to NACFB lender Patrons, supplier Partners, and personnel therein. NACFB Member brokers are not eligible to enter any award category.

• Eligible entrants may submit entries into as many award categories as they deem relevant.

• Multiple entries into the same category are permitted where relevant.

• Entries must be made using the online submission form. Separate, unique submissions must be made for each entry.

• Entries must relate to activity undertaken between 1 September 2025 and the submission deadline. Initiatives that began before this period may be entered where a substantial part of the activity or impact occurred during the eligibility period.

• Entries must be submitted by 5pm on Monday 7th September 2026. Any entries received after this date may not be accepted.

Judging and shortlisting 

• All entries will be reviewed by members of the judging panel who will determine the shortlist in each category. This year’s judging panel is made up of individual experts from recognised industry stakeholders and includes a representative from the NACFB Board.

• All entry information provided to judges will be used solely for the purposes of assessing the entries. Any potentially sensitive information will not be made public.

• To support impartial judging, entrants’ names and identifying information will be redacted before submissions are shared with the judging panel. Entrants may also anonymise their own submissions if they wish.

• Anonymisation will not apply to the Industry Leader of the Year, Rising Star of the Year, Unsung Hero of the Year, Women’s Advocate Award or any other category in which the identity of the nominated individual is fundamental to the entry.

• The NACFB and judging panel reserve the right, without prior consent of the entrant, to move entries into different categories if they feel it is more appropriate.

• Shortlisted entrants will be notified under embargo by email on Monday 12th October 2026 and the full shortlist will be published on the NACFB Commercial Lender Awards website on Tuesday 13th October 2026

Broker review and Member voting

• A select panel of brokers will review the shortlist by name only as a final sense-check and in an advisory capacity. The panel will provide industry oversight but will not score entries or determine any final outcome.

• On Tuesday 13th October 2026 eligible NACFB Member brokers will be invited to vote for their preferred Patrons/Partner in all relevant categories. Voting will close at 5pm on Tuesday 20th October. The NACFB reserves the right to extend the voting period.

• In all categories, the winners and highly commended entrants will be determined through an appropriate blend of judging panel scores and votes from NACFB Member brokers. Product-led categories will place greater weight on the broker vote, while individual categories, and those that rely more heavily on the detail contained within the submission, will place greater weight on the judges’ assessment.

• The winners will be announced at the NACFB’s Commercial Lender Awards 2026 ceremony on Thursday 26th November 2026 at the Westminster Park Plaza hotel, London.

• All decisions made by the judging panel and by the NACFB relating to shortlisting, Member voting, presentations and the granting of awards are final. No correspondence will be entered into, and no reasons given for decisions.

• Winners may state in advertising and promotional material that they have won, but they must state the year in which the award was won.