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No personal guarantee —
what it means.
It is a short phrase that carries a lot of weight. With Credicorp, the company borrows, never you personally. This guide explains exactly what that means for a director — how it differs from secured and guaranteed lending, and why the company is the only obligor.
When you incorporate a company, you create a separate legal person. The company owns its assets, signs its own contracts and owes its own debts. A personal guarantee deliberately reaches back across that line — and "no personal guarantee" means the line stays where it is.
Creditcorp is the growing name for the Credicorp group, and Credicorp Limited is the lender behind it. Every one of its products is lent to the company alone. This page explains what that protects, and what it does not — plainly, and without overstating it. It is general information, not legal advice; for your own position, take your own advice.
The borrower is the company — a UK private limited company (Ltd), LLP or PLC. This is not a personal loan, a payday loan or sole-trader finance, and when you are ready, applying happens on the lender's own site, credicorp.co.uk.
What a personal guarantee usually is
To see what "none" means, it helps to picture what is being left out.
A personal guarantee is a separate promise, signed by an individual — almost always a director or owner — to step in and repay the company's debt personally if the company itself cannot. It is a common condition on business borrowing: a bank or broker lends to the company, but asks a director to stand behind it so the lender has a second person to pursue.
The effect is to dissolve, for that debt, the separation that incorporation was meant to create. A guaranteed business loan that goes wrong can become a personal claim against the director — and where the guarantee is paired with a charge over the family home, the home can be at stake. That is a heavy thing to sign, particularly in a trade where one disputed invoice can swing a year's numbers.
Secured, guaranteed, and the Credicorp model
Three ways a lender can protect itself — and which one applies here.
Secured lending
The lender takes a charge over an asset — property, plant, a debenture over the company's assets. If the loan is not repaid, the lender can look to that asset. The security might be the company's, or it might be the director's own, such as a charge over a home.
Guaranteed lending
The lender takes a personal guarantee from a director, so a second person stands behind the company's debt. The company is still the borrower, but the director has promised to pay personally if it does not.
The Credicorp model
Neither of the above. Credicorp lends to the company on the strength of the company's own trading position, with:
- No personal guarantee — no director stands behind the debt personally.
- No charge over a home — the director's house is not security for the company's borrowing.
- No personal credit check on a director — the assessment is of the business.
- The company as sole obligor — the agreement is between Credicorp and the company, full stop.
In short, the company borrows on its own account, and the separation that incorporation gives you is left intact.
Why the company is the only obligor
An "obligor" is simply the party that owes the debt. Under a Credicorp agreement, that is the company alone. When a director signs, they sign as an officer acting for the company — the way they would sign any company contract — not as a personal co-borrower or guarantor. The signature binds the business, not the individual behind it.
This flows directly from how Credicorp lends. Because it lends only to bodies corporate, the company is always the counterparty, and the lender's recourse runs to the company's own position rather than to a director's personal assets. Directors still owe their ordinary legal duties — to the company, and in difficulty to its creditors — and this page does not change any of that; but a Credicorp loan does not, by itself, sit on a director's own shoulders the way a guaranteed loan does.
What it does — and does not — mean
Worth being clear on both sides, so the phrase is not read as more than it is.
What it means
- The director is not a personal guarantor of the company's loan.
- There is no charge over the director's home or personal assets.
- The lender's recourse is to the company, not to the individual.
- The director's personal credit file is not checked for this lending.
What it does not mean
- It is not "free money" or a loan that need not be repaid — the company still owes it in full.
- It does not remove a director's ordinary legal duties to the company and its creditors.
- It does not make the lending available to individuals or sole traders — it is for bodies corporate only.
- It is not legal advice. For your own circumstances, take your own.
Why the model is built this way
Lending to the company alone is part of a single, consistent position: Credicorp lends only to bodies corporate — UK limited companies and LLPs. Under Article 60B of the FSMA Regulated Activities Order 2001, lending to a body corporate is not a regulated consumer-credit agreement, so this is business credit rather than consumer credit, and it is not for sole traders or for borrowing in a personal name. The full position is set out on lending and regulation.
Personal guarantee questions
The questions directors ask most. This is general information, not legal advice; for your own situation, the lender's team are at credicorp.co.uk.
What is a personal guarantee?
A personal guarantee is a separate promise by an individual — usually a director — to repay a company's debt personally if the company cannot. It turns a company obligation into a personal one, and can put personal assets at risk. Credicorp does not ask for one.
So who is on the hook for a Credicorp loan?
The company, and only the company. The agreement is between Credicorp Limited and your UK limited company, LLP or PLC. The director who signs does so on the company's behalf, as its officer — not as a personal guarantor.
Does the lender take a charge over my home or other assets?
No. There is no charge over a home and no security taken over the director's personal assets. This is unsecured lending to the company, assessed on the company's own trading position.
Is my personal credit file checked?
No personal credit check is run on a director for this lending. The assessment looks at the business — its bank statements, its track record and business credit information — not a director's own consumer file.
What happens if the company cannot repay?
Because there is no personal guarantee, the lender's recourse is to the company, not to the director personally. Directors still owe their ordinary legal duties to the company and its creditors, but a missed business loan does not, by itself, become a personal debt the way a guaranteed loan would. For your own situation, take your own legal advice.
Where to go next
To see how the lending itself is priced and structured, read how business bridging loans work and what a revolving credit facility is. To understand how the lender decides a company can afford to repay without leaning on a director, see how affordability is assessed. The whole series sits on the Learn hub.
Ready when you are
Applying, drawing down and managing your account all happen on the lender's site, credicorp.co.uk.