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East of England · Q3 2026 data

Business funding in Cambridge

Cambridge has 15,608 trading companies. 1,779 of them (11.4%) have secured borrowing registered at Companies House, below the East of England at 13.6% and the UK at 14.0%.

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15,608trading companies
11.4%have secured borrowing
677new companies in Q3 2026
3.8%late filing accounts

How Cambridge's sectors borrow

The biggest sectors in Cambridge, and the share of companies in each with a lender's charge registered against them. Real estate & lettings borrows most against its assets here, at 42%.

Professional services2,843 companies
5%
Tech, media & telecoms2,039 companies
6%
Real estate & lettings1,624 companies
42%
Manufacturing1,489 companies
8%
Construction & trades902 companies
9%
Retail836 companies
8%
Business support services748 companies
7%
Restaurants, pubs & cafes604 companies
7%

Older businesses borrow more

Lenders like a track record. In Cambridge, the share of companies with secured borrowing climbs with age, which is why a young business often starts with asset finance or a smaller unsecured loan.

Under 2 years4,596 companies
2%
2 to 5 years2,818 companies
9%
5 to 10 years3,274 companies
12%
10 to 20 years3,149 companies
14%
Over 20 years1,771 companies
31%

Who's lending in the East of England

The 261 new lender charges we tracked against the East of England companies in Q3 2026, by type of lender. Property, bridging & buy-to-let made up the largest share, as most mortgages on company-owned property are registered as charges.

Property, bridging & buy-to-let
51%
Specialist & alternative lenders
21%
Banks
15%
Asset finance
2%
Invoice finance
2%

Funding that fits Cambridge businesses

Plain-English guides to the kinds of funding that suit Cambridge's biggest sectors.

Elsewhere in the East of England

Source: every live company on the Companies House register at 2026-10-01, analysed by DueLead for its Q3 2026 Pulse report on Cambridge. "Secured borrowing" means at least one outstanding charge, a lender's security registered at Companies House, so unsecured loans and overdrafts don't show. Trading companies means active limited companies, LLPs and PLCs, excluding dormant companies, financial services firms and public bodies. Sole traders aren't on the register, so they aren't counted.