UK SME Lending Glossary
Concise, working definitions of terms every UK fintech lender, BD, compliance officer, and data engineer should know. Updated as the regulatory landscape moves.
SIC code
The Standard Industrial Classification code — the 5-digit identifier UK Companies House uses to label every company's industry. The backbone of any lender's ICP filter.
Companies House
The UK government registrar of every limited company. Free REST API, public-by-statute data, the highest-quality "just incorporated" trigger for lenders.
FCA-regulated lender
What it means to be authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority — and which SME lending activities sit inside vs outside the FCA perimeter.
GDPR for lead generation
How UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 apply to B2B borrower-intent data — legitimate interest, controller obligations, and the public-data carve-out.
Borrower intent data
The signal that a specific company is likely to seek debt financing soon. How it differs from horizontal B2B intent (Bombora, 6sense), and what triggers count.