57. kennek Creaky spreadsheets and data arriving on multiple formats was causing a disconnect between lenders and borrowers that kennek has set out to bridge. 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. Founders: Thibault Lancksweert, Xavier De Pauw, Hervé Lagache, and Edmund ParsonsYear founded: 2021Website: kennek.ioLenders are struggling to scale, get funding and drive profits by their existing, “lethargic” processes, claim the financial experts behind the fintech startup, kennek.Xavier De Pauw and Thibault Lancksweert have years of credit experience behind them and joined together to solve an issue that they argue is holding back the entire loans industry – siloed data held in multiple formats. The problem, they say, is that data is not connected, related or centralised, while workflows are manual, offline and time consuming.Alongside Hervé Lagache and Edmund Parsons, they designed kennek; a UK-based platform dedicated to bridging and development loans and for business loans providers. It is described as “an end-to-end solution”, which includes a flexible loan product engine, tailored to the unregulated credit market.Lenders have previously been tied to Excel spreadsheets and then receive data from potential borrowers in multiple formats. The kennek platform does away with this, allowing “alternative and specialist lenders to streamline operations, enhance decision-making and manage risk effectively”, explains the team.It is more than a loan management system, they claim. In fact, the platform now covers origination and underwriting, servicing and monitoring, credit portfolio management, and investor reporting – all in one place.The platform, based in London, has already won plaudits as Fintech Startup of the Year 2024 at the London Fintech Awards. It is now backed by large VC funds, after raising €11.8m in a seed round in 2023, and aspires to become the leading loan management system in the UK, USA and Australia over the next five years.For specialist lenders, non-bank lenders, credit originators and challenger banks, kennek is promising to boost profits by streamlining processes, and it already has the customers to prove it’s delivering. It’s a platform built by lenders, for lenders. And it’s a worthy invention for the Startups 100 Index 2026.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. 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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.