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Yorkshire and the Humber · Q3 2026 data

Business funding in Leeds

Leeds has 39,984 trading companies. 6,349 of them (15.9%) have secured borrowing registered at Companies House, above Yorkshire and the Humber at 15.5% and the UK at 14.0%.

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39,984trading companies
15.9%have secured borrowing
1,731new companies in Q3 2026
4.8%late filing accounts

How Leeds's sectors borrow

The biggest sectors in Leeds, 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 46%.

Real estate & lettings5,986 companies
46%
Professional services4,877 companies
8%
Tech, media & telecoms3,401 companies
6%
Construction & trades3,222 companies
9%
Retail3,162 companies
7%
Business support services2,237 companies
9%
Restaurants, pubs & cafes2,233 companies
6%
Healthcare & dental2,041 companies
7%

Older businesses borrow more

Lenders like a track record. In Leeds, 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 years12,079 companies
5%
2 to 5 years8,278 companies
13%
5 to 10 years8,913 companies
18%
10 to 20 years7,195 companies
20%
Over 20 years3,519 companies
43%

Who's lending in Yorkshire and the Humber

The 388 new lender charges we tracked against Yorkshire and the Humber 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
59%
Asset finance
14%
Banks
8%
Specialist & alternative lenders
6%
Invoice finance
3%

Funding that fits Leeds businesses

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

Elsewhere in Yorkshire and the Humber

Source: every live company on the Companies House register at 2026-10-01, analysed by DueLead for its Q3 2026 Pulse report on Leeds. "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.