Shortlist unveiled for NACFB Commercial Lender Awards 2026
The NACFB has revealed the shortlist for its Commercial Lender Awards 2026, celebrating excellence in commercial lending and the support of the industry’s service providers.
This year’s awards attracted a record 497 entries across 25 categories from the Association’s Patron lenders and Partner suppliers – a 16% increase in submissions and a 6% rise in participating firms compared with last year.
A panel of expert judges assessed each entry against clear criteria designed to ensure fairness and consistency.
To safeguard the integrity of the judging, organisation-only categories were assessed anonymously, while categories featuring individuals, or a combination of individuals and firms, remained identifiable.
Winners and highly commended entries will be decided by a combination of judges’ assessments and Member votes, with the results revealed at the awards ceremony at Westminster Park Plaza on Thursday 26th November 2026.
Patrons and Partners who have not yet secured their places are encouraged to book here before the early bird window closes on Friday 30th October 2026. Individual tickets and tables of 10 are available.
The NACFB is proud to reveal the 2026 finalists as:
Asset Finance & Leasing Lender of the Year
Allica Bank
Arkle Finance
Close Brothers
Investec Asset Finance
Liberty Finance
Lloyds Bank
Metro Bank
NatWest
Novuna Business Finance
Renaissance Asset Finance
Simply Asset Finance
United Trust Bank
BDM Team of the Year
365 Finance
Atom Bank
Barclays
Bibby Financial Services
Cambridge & Counties Bank
Glenhawk
Hope Capital Property Finance
NatWest
Reward Funding
Shawbrook Bank
Somo
Time Finance
Bridging Finance Lender of the Year
Allica Bank
Cambridge & Counties Bank
Cohort Capital
Colenko
Glenhawk
Hope Capital Property Finance
Masthaven Finance
MS Lending Group
MT Finance
Octane Capital
Phoenix Money
Together
United Trust Bank
West One Loans
Business Bank of the Year
Allica Bank
Arbuthnot Latham
Atom Bank
Handelsbanken
HSBC UK
Lloyds Bank
Metro Bank
NatWest
Recognise Bank
Business Loan Lender of the Year
Capify
Funding Circle
iwoca
Let's Do Business Finance
Momenta Finance
NatWest
Nucleus Commercial Finance
Shawbrook Bank
Buy-to-Let Mortgage Lender of the Year
BM Solutions
Castle Trust Bank
CHL Mortgages
Foundation
Keystone Property Finance
LendCo
LendInvest
Offa
Paragon Bank
Redwood Bank
YBS Commercial Mortgages
Commercial Mortgage Lender of the Year
Albatross Lending Group
Aldermore Bank
Allica Bank
Atom Bank
HSBC UK
Metro Bank
NatWest
Redwood Bank
TAB
Together
Community Lender of the Year
CAF Bank
Charity Bank
FOLK2FOLK
GC Business Finance
Let's Do Business Finance
Reliance Bank
SWIG Finance
Triodos Bank
Unity Trust Bank
YouLend
Development Finance Lender of the Year
Aldermore Bank
Assetz Capital
Blackfinch Property
Bridging Finance Solutions
Hampshire Trust Bank
Masthaven Finance
Paragon Bank
Roma Finance
Secure Trust Bank
Shawbrook Bank
Emerging Lender of the Year
Daizun Property Finance
Factored
Hilco Real Estate Finance
Lakeshield
Pallas Capital
Reward Funding
Rural Commercial
ScotLend Group
Triver
Industry Leader of the Year
Nick Baker – Allica Bank
Josh Harris – Doc2
Ian Coulson – HSBC UK
Jamie Kemp – Lloyds Bank
Stephen Henman – Method Valuation
Nova Everidge – Metro Bank
Simon Bateman – Recognise Bank
Nick Smith – Reward Funding
Sharon Ellis – Reward Funding
Rural Commercial Ltd
Josh Levy – Ultimate Finance
Max Shave – YouLend
Industry Supplier of the Year
Brickflow
Doc2
Method Valuation
VAS
Intermediary Advocate of the Year
Brickflow
Cambridge & Counties Bank
Lloyds Banking Group
Method Valuation
Momenta Finance
Roma Finance
Ultimate Finance
Invoice Finance Lender of the Year
4Syte
Bibby Financial Services
Close Brothers Invoice Finance
Cynergy Business Finance
FlexABL
Lloyds Bank
Mitsubishi HC Capital UK Plc t/as Novuna Business Cash Flow
Skipton Business Finance
Ultimate Finance
Marketing Team of the Year
Albatross Lending Group
Catalyst Property Finance
Cynergy Bank
Doc2
GC Business Finance
LendCo
Mercantile Trust
MS Lending Group
Recognise Bank
Reward Funding
Roma Finance
YBS Commercial Mortgages
Pioneers of the Year
Cubefunder
Factored
Funding Circle
Liberty Finance
Method Valuation
multifi
NatWest (IP Lending)
Unity Trust Bank
Rising Star of the Year
Lewis Casserly – Albatross Lending Group
Kara Smith – Arkle Finance
Liz Yiangou – Barclays
Jason Wong – Blackfinch Property
Emmanuel Egbe – Funding Circle
Joseph Butler – Lloyds Bank
Mustafa Omar – Lloyds Bank
Ollie Brown – Metro Bank
Jo Kinsey – NatWest
Emma Gorman – Paragon Bank
Service Excellence Award
Arkle Finance
Doc2
Hampshire Trust Bank (HTB)
Investec Asset Finance
iwoca
Lloyds Bank
MT Finance
Novuna Business Finance
Reward Funding
Simply Asset Finance
Solifi
Ultimate Finance
YBS Commercial Mortgages
YouLend
Short-term Finance Lender of the Year
Catalyst Property Finance
Charles Street Finance
FOLK2FOLK
Hampshire Trust Bank (HTB)
Hilco Real Estate Finance
Playter/Shawbrook
Premium Credit
Recognise Bank
Reward Funding
Wayflyer
YouLend
Specialist Lender of the Year
Abcor Finance
Charity Bank
Cubefunder
LHV Bank
Liquid Link
Lloyds Bank (Construction Invoice Finance)
Offa
Proplend
Signature Property Finance
TAB
Together
UK Agricultural Finance
United Trust Bank
Sustainability Champion of the Year
Barclays
CAF Bank
Charity Bank
Lloyds Bank
Novuna Business Finance
Rural Commercial
Triodos Bank
Unity Trust Bank
Underwriting Team of the Year
365 Finance
Hope Capital Property Finance
Investec Asset Finance
Momenta Finance
Novuna Business Finance
Roma Finance
ScotLend Group
TAB
United Trust Bank
YBS Commercial Mortgages
Unsung Hero of the Year
Ifan Dupuy – 365 Finance
Ben Harris – Doc2
Tom Andrews – Funding Circle
Farrah Hill – HSBC UK
Starr Mumford – LendCo
Liz McDermott – Method Valuation
Vicky Fraser – NatWest
Kannan Tharmakulasingam – Premium Credit
Vicky Gregory – Roma Finance
Thomas Betts – Tower Leasing
Women's Advocate Award
Emma Betley – Atom Bank
Kate Cowan – Hope Capital Property Finance
Katherine Chan – Juice Ventures
Bobbie Knight – Liquid Link
Metro Bank
Julie Warren – Propel Finance
Charlotte Rutter – Roma Finance
Tanya Elmaz – Together
Ultimate Finance
Uliana Kuzmis – Pallas Capital
All shortlisted lending organisations are automatically entered into the coveted NACFB Commercial Lender of the Year category.
Jim Higginbotham, CEO of the NACFB, said: “The calibre of this year’s entries has been exceptional, making the judging process particularly challenging. I’d like to thank our distinguished panel of judges for the time, expertise and care they brought to the process, and congratulate everyone who has earned a place on this year’s shortlist.
“I’d also like to recognise everyone who entered but didn’t make the shortlist this time. We greatly appreciate the effort, ambition and commitment that went into every submission. I hope we’ll see you back among the entries next year – there is always another opportunity to showcase the outstanding work being done across our industry,” he added.
NACFB Member brokers are now invited to have their say by voting for their preferred Patron lender or Partner supplier in each category. Voting is open for one week and closes at 5pm on Tuesday 20th October 2026.
To keep voting fair and transparent, eligible Member brokers will receive a password to access the voting platform, with each firm limited to five votes per category.