10. Lenkie Technologies Lenkie is closing the cash flow gap for UK businesses by providing a fast, flexible funding solution. Written by Helena Young Sponsored by Sage Published on January 12, 2026 About the Startups 100 Now in its 18th year, the Startups 100 is the definitive list of the most promising new UK businesses. There's no fee for entry or for inclusion in our index. The Startups team of new business experts judge all our top 100 entrants in collaboration with specialist industry consultants. See our guide to this year’s hottest new businesses and most exceptional founders in the complete 2026 Startups 100 index. Founder: Sanjeev Jeyakumar and Nnaemeka ObodoekweYear founded: 2020Website: lenkie.comIt’s a major frustration for SMEs: having to turn down contracts and opportunities due to limited access to funding. You have to spend money to make money, as the adage goes. But that’s easier said than done when you’re a small firm navigating the “£90bn lending gap”.CEO Sanjeev Jeyakumar first saw this problem firsthand while building a marketplace to help small businesses scale. Too many great entrepreneurs were unable to grow because funding was too slow, too expensive, or too inflexible. “Banks said no, and the few alternatives charged punishing rates. That was the lightbulb moment,” he recalls. The resulting paradox can leave many businesses financially stranded: how can you scale without capital, or a trusted financial partner? That’s where Lenkie comes in. Banks said no, and the few alternatives charged punishing rates. That was the lightbulb moment Lenkie is a “Grow Now, Pay Later” credit facility that will take care of supplier invoices for SMEs. Its customers can borrow the amount they owe, and they will then pay Lenkie back in lump sum installments, for a period of up to 12 months. And, just like Buy Now, Pay Later did for ecommerce, it has the potential to massively disrupt the small business economy.Lenkie’s platform uses thousands of data points to build a highly accurate, real-time credit model of each business. It can then offer fast, transparent funding with only a single fee per transaction, while customers (typically SMEs generating £1M-£50M in annual revenue) gain the flexibility to manage cashflow, seize new contracts, and pay suppliers on time.This is solving a major problem for businesses by freeing up their cash: they no longer need to have all their money tied up in unpaid invoices. It also means businesses don’t need to stress about unhappy suppliers, and creates a smoother, more predictable payment cycle.Convincing investors to back a lending platform wasn’t easy in a market wary of capital-intensive models, although Lenkie’s conviction paid off. The company secured £49m in Series A funding last year from a number of venture capital firms including Ground Up Ventures, and several fintech angels across the US and Europe.But the founders are “most proud” that the startup has deployed over £100m to UK firms, so far. “Behind that figure are thousands of real stories – from a family-run contractor taking on bigger projects to an ecommerce founder finally hiring their first employee,” says Jeyakumar. “For us, that milestone symbolised more than scale; it showed that our model truly works and that we’re making a tangible difference to the backbone of the UK economy.”Already trusted by thousands, Lenkie’s aim is to be the biggest non-bank lender in the UK, as well as expanding internationally to put £1bn into small businesses all over the globe.View the full Startups 100 Index for 20261. Omnea2. HIVED3. MAGIC AI4. OXCCU5. Lightyear6. Neuranics 7. Hormona8. Burbank9. Better Dairy 10. Lenkie Technologies11. Userled12. Hoxton Farms13. Rensair14. PulpaTronics15. TradeKart16. 32Co17. Carmoola18. cheqd19. Sightline Analytics20. Adamo Foods21. Bold Bean Co22. Beams Renovation 23. Pan Galactic24. Capi Money25. Spotted Zebra26. ANTHROTEK 27. Unravel28. Perci Health29. Untap Health30. Hair Syrup31. Connect Earth 32. spacebands 33. Unfabled34. Lightning Reach35. STOCKED36. Embeddable37. XR Therapeutics38. Literal Labs39. Scooch40. Openr41. Fibe Limited42. Inicio AI43. Peachies44. Better Nature 45. Ctrl Alt46. Resting Reef47. Nila48. ROXFIT49. Finmile50. NavLive51. Volunteero52. Inntelo AI53. Zonova54. A&B Smart Materials55. Ethicronics56. Treeapp57. kennek58. Soil Benchmark59. Vox Aeris60. Asan Cup61. Nuuri62. Mindstone63. MYNDUP64. Enbiosis Biotechnology65. JUX Food66. Danu Robotics67. Wylde Market68. Air Aware Labs69. Mimicrete Ltd70. ALYVE71. Happl72. Living Things73. Grub Club Pets74. Mealia75. PetProov76. Lylo Products77. Chest78. ZIM Connections79. Uptime Labs80. Teal81. Zero Fintech82. Micro Thermal Energy 83. Kanjo 84. Merlin Cloud85. My Skin Feels86. Eleria87. Cashblack88. RevvedUp89. Cosysense90. SuperFi91. Loom92. Legacy Compass93. Meshed94. SWURF95. Main Squeeze96. Sampl Technologies97. Over the Moo98. Pioneering People99. Bikebook100. Recondition Share this post facebook twitter linkedin Tags 2026 Written by: Helena Young Deputy Editor Helena is Deputy Editor at Startups. She oversees all news and supporting content on Startups, and is also the author of the weekly Startups email newsletter, delivering must-know SME updates straight to their inbox. From interviewing Wetherspoon's boss Tim Martin to spotting data-led working from home trends, her insight has been featured by major trade publications including the ICAEW, and news outlets like the BBC, ITV News, Daily Express, and HuffPost UK. With a background in PR and marketing, Helena is particularly passionate about giving early-stage startups a platform to boost their brands. That's one reason she manages the Startups 100 Index, our annual ranking of new UK businesses. Sponsored by: Sage Startups 100 Index Sponsor 2026 Sage exists to knock down barriers so everyone can thrive, starting with the millions of Small and Mid-Sized Businesses served by us, our partners and accountants. Customers trust our finance, HR and payroll software to make work and money flow. By digitising business processes and relationships with customers, suppliers, employees, banks and governments, our digital network connects SMBs, removing friction and delivering insights. Knocking down barriers also means we use our time, technology and experience to tackle digital inequality, economic inequality and the climate crisis.