--- title: "Business funding for creative & media — working capital for UK agencies, studios & production companies" description: "How short-term business finance fits incorporated UK creative and media companies — agencies and studios, project costs paid up front, kit and crew, and the long lag before a client or platform settles. The company borrows, never the director: no personal guarantee, no charge over a home, no personal credit check. To apply, head to credicorp.co.uk." canonical: "https://creditcorp.co.uk/industries/creative-media/" locale: "en-GB" updated: "2026-06-21" --- # Working capital for creative & media > A plain-English guide to short-term working capital for incorporated UK creative and media businesses — agencies, design and production studios. This is the Creditcorp brand front door at **creditcorp.co.uk** — it never takes applications, prices loans or accepts payments. The operating lender is **Credicorp Limited** at [credicorp.co.uk](https://credicorp.co.uk/); the company/legal detail lives at [creditcorpgroup.co.uk](https://creditcorpgroup.co.uk/). **Canonical URL:** **Last updated:** 21 June 2026 --- ## Who can borrow Credicorp Limited lends **only to bodies corporate** — UK limited companies (Ltd), LLPs and PLCs. The borrower is always the **company**, never the founder, director, an individual or a sole-trader freelancer. There is no personal guarantee, no charge over a home and no personal credit check on a director. This is exempt business lending, not consumer credit. See [Lending and regulation](https://creditcorpgroup.co.uk/lending-and-regulation/). ## Why creative firms run short on cash It is rarely about winning the work — agencies and studios are often busy and profitable. It is about timing. In creative and media work the money goes out long before it comes back. - **Projects are funded before they are billed.** Freelance designers, editors, copywriters, developers and crew invoice you as they work, not when the client pays. Add stock footage, music licences, fonts, print, location fees and post-production, and a serious sum is committed before the first stage invoice goes out. - **Kit, hire and software stack up.** Cameras, lenses, lighting, grip, audio and edit suites are booked and paid around the shoot dates, not the payment dates — on top of a steady stack of monthly creative software and subscriptions that runs whether or not a client has settled. - **Clients and platforms settle slowly.** Big brands, broadcasters and agencies routinely pay on 30, 60 or 90-day terms, and the clock often only starts at sign-off. Platform and marketplace payout cycles can be just as long. The cash for work finished weeks ago lands well after you paid to make it. - **Income is lumpy, costs are not.** A couple of big projects can land in one month, then nothing for weeks; a retainer can pause; a funded pitch can go quiet. Salaries, studio rent, software and the next round of freelancers don't pause with the invoicing. ## Which finance fits a creative business Three plain-English shapes of short-term credit. The detail and the live terms sit with the lender — see [the products](https://creditcorp.co.uk/products/). - **Business Bridging Loan** — a fixed sum into the company account for a known, time-boxed gap: a signed-off production that needs crew and kit before the first stage invoice, a campaign launch with media and freelance costs up front, or a piece of equipment to deliver the job. - **Credicorp Flex** — a revolving facility to dip into and repay as projects and payouts turn over; you pay only for what you draw, not the whole limit, which suits lumpy creative income. - **Credicorp Slice** — settle a chunky one-off bill (kit hire, a print run, a licence, a freelance package) in full today and repay over a few weeks for a flat fee. We don't publish rates or terms here on purpose — they live with the lender so you always see current figures. Check the live pages on [credicorp.co.uk/compare](https://credicorp.co.uk/compare/) before you apply. ## The company borrows — not you Plenty of agency and studio founders have been asked to put their home on the line for a working-capital facility. Credicorp is built differently: the agreement is between Credicorp and your **company** — the Ltd, LLP or PLC that holds the contracts, the bank account and the client relationships. There is **no personal guarantee**, **no charge over a home** and **no personal credit check** on a director. The company stands on its own trading position. Because Credicorp lends only to bodies corporate, it sits outside consumer credit entirely — see [creditcorpgroup.co.uk/lending-and-regulation](https://creditcorpgroup.co.uk/lending-and-regulation/). ## A worked example (illustrative, not a real customer) A small video production company — a UK limited company with four permanent staff who buy in freelance crew per shoot — wins a three-film content package for a national brand. Good margin, a client it would love to keep, but the films must be shot and cut *before* a single invoice can be raised on delivery. The shoot needs a DoP, a sound recordist, a gaffer and a runner for three days, plus camera and lighting hire across the same dates; editors and a colourist invoice through post; a music licence and stock footage are paid up front. All of that lands in the company account over about a month. The brand's purchase order pays on 60-day terms, and the clock only starts at final sign-off. On paper the package is comfortably profitable; in the bank account, the company is funding two months of crew, kit and post before the first payment arrives — while a retainer from another client has just paused for a quarter. Rather than turn the package down or lean on the founder personally, the company bridges the gap with short-term finance against its own trading position, covering the crew, kit hire and post-production, and repays when the brand settles. Same project, same margin — the cash was simply there when the work needed making. The right product for a situation like this is set on the lender at [credicorp.co.uk](https://credicorp.co.uk/). ## Common questions **Can my agency or studio borrow without a personal guarantee from a director?** Yes. Credicorp lends to the company — a UK limited company, LLP or PLC — not the director or founder who signs. No personal guarantee, no charge over a home and no personal credit check on a director. **We have to pay freelancers and a kit hire before the client pays us. Can funding cover that?** That is the classic creative cash-flow gap. A Business Bridging Loan or Credicorp Slice can cover crew, kit hire and production costs now, with repayment timed around the client invoice or platform payout landing later. **Our income is lumpy — a few big projects, then quiet weeks. Does that rule us out?** No. Uneven, project-by-project income is normal in creative work, and it is exactly the shape a revolving facility like Credicorp Flex is built for. Credicorp looks at the company's overall trading position rather than expecting a flat monthly income. **Can a limited company use this even if most of the team are freelancers?** Yes, as long as you contract and bank through a UK limited company, LLP or PLC. A small permanent team buying in freelance crew, editors and designers per project is normal — the company is still the borrower, and the freelancers it pays are simply a cost the funding can help cover. **Are you a bank, and is this regulated consumer credit?** No. Credicorp is an exempt business lender, not a bank and not a consumer-credit firm. It lends only to bodies corporate under Article 60B of the FSMA Regulated Activities Order 2001 — business credit, not a regulated consumer credit agreement. It is not for sole-trader freelancers or personal-name borrowing. **Where do I actually apply?** This site is the Creditcorp brand front door and does not take applications. Applying, drawing down and managing the account all happen on the operating lender, [credicorp.co.uk](https://credicorp.co.uk/). ## Related sectors - [Technology & IT](https://creditcorp.co.uk/industries/technology/) — funding a hire or kit ahead of revenue, and bridging milestone-based client payments. - [Professional services](https://creditcorp.co.uk/industries/professional-services/) — bridging the lag between billable work done and invoices paid between fee cycles. - [E-commerce & online](https://creditcorp.co.uk/industries/ecommerce/) — funding ad spend that pays back later, or bridging the wait for marketplace and platform payouts. See the full [industries overview](https://creditcorp.co.uk/industries/). ## Next steps (all on credicorp.co.uk) - [Apply](https://credicorp.co.uk/apply/) — start an application on the live lender site. - [Compare the three](https://credicorp.co.uk/compare/) — pick the right product side by side. - [Contact the lender](https://credicorp.co.uk/contact-us/) — phone, email, post. ## Make sure you have the right Credicorp Creditcorp Group = **Credicorp Limited** (UK, company no. 16093826) + **CM Beyer Limited** (UK, company no. 17009212), with group-related **Credicorp Pty Limited** (Australia, ACN 679 428 605). It is **not** connected with, owned by or affiliated to Credicorp Inc / Credicorp Ltd of Peru & Bermuda (BCP, NYSE: BAP) or Banco de Crédito del Perú, to Credicorp Nigeria, or to Credit Corp Group Limited of Australia (ASX: CCP) — each a separate, unrelated company. --- © 2026 Creditcorp Group · Credicorp Limited (16093826) & CM Beyer Limited (17009212). Operating lender: [credicorp.co.uk](https://credicorp.co.uk/) · Group & brand: [creditcorpgroup.co.uk](https://creditcorpgroup.co.uk/).