Eligibility · Business loans
What lenders actually look at, what is realistic if your company is young or has nothing to pledge, and exactly which documents you will be asked for. Worth ten minutes before anyone pulls your credit file.
The short answer
Most Singapore banks want to see a company that has traded for at least one to two years with steady turnover through its bank account, directors with clean personal credit conduct, and no outstanding IRAS or ACRA issues, before they will consider an unsecured business term loan. A younger or thinner company is not shut out — it is usually looking at government-supported facilities under Enterprise Singapore's Enterprise Financing Scheme, at non-bank lenders whose appetite is different, or at borrowing in a director's own name instead. None of this is a guarantee of anything: every lender sets its own criteria and every application is subject to lender approval.
Last reviewed . Everything below is stated as a market norm rather than any named lender’s policy, and all financing is subject to lender approval.
The criteria
These are market norms, not any named institution’s policy. Every lender sets its own criteria, revises them, and weighs them differently — and meeting all six is not approval. It is the point at which the conversation becomes worth having.
| What is assessed | Typical market norm | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Operating history | Commonly one to two years of trading for an unsecured bank term loan | It is the record the pricing is built on. Less history is not a no — it changes which lenders are realistic. |
| Turnover through the bank account | Consistent monthly credits, not just a healthy closing balance | Statements are read for rhythm. Thin months and near-zero days matter more than the annual figure. |
| Director credit conduct | Clean personal repayment history for the guaranteeing directors | Unsecured facilities usually rest on a personal guarantee, so the director's own file is part of the underwriting. |
| IRAS and ACRA standing | Returns filed, no outstanding tax, ACRA profile current | Visible, checkable, and among the fastest things to put right before applying. |
| Local shareholding | Relevant for government-supported schemes, not for every facility | Enterprise Financing Scheme facilities require at least 30% local equity; commercial lenders set their own view. |
| Existing debt | Facilities already carried, including from non-bank lenders | Determines what another lender can responsibly add on top of the repayment you already have. |
Scroll the table sideways on a narrow screen. All financing is subject to lender approval.
Lead Advisor only introduces clients to banks. We do not recommend loan products, negotiate terms, or prepare or submit loan applications. Discuss eligibility, documents, rates and any application directly with the bank.
Under a year old
Then an unsecured bank term loan is probably not the first door to try. That is a timing problem rather than a judgement on the business, and it is worth knowing before you spend an enquiry on your credit file finding out.
What is realistic instead falls into three groups, and which one applies is a numbers question rather than a preference:
Government-supported facilities
Enterprise Singapore’s Enterprise Financing Scheme includes an SME Working Capital Loan of up to S$500,000 per borrower, with a maximum repayment period of five years, for ACRA-registered entities registered and operating in Singapore with at least 30% local equity held by Singaporeans and/or Singapore PRs and group annual sales turnover not exceeding S$500 million. The scheme treats young enterprises as their own category — Enterprise Singapore defines these as firms formed within the past five years, with at least one employee and more than 50% equity owned by individuals. Applications go through a participating financial institution, which still makes the credit decision. Figures as published by Enterprise Singapore and read on 20 August 2026; scheme parameters change, so check the scheme page before relying on them.
Non-bank lenders
Finance companies and private financial institutions underwrite to a different appetite and will often look at a shorter trading record. That flexibility is priced, and the price is a real trade-off to weigh rather than a detail to skip past. Discuss these differences directly with the provider. Lead Advisor only introduces clients to banks.
Borrowing in a director’s own name
Common for young companies, and a legitimate bridge. The trade-off is stated in one sentence: the debt sits on the individual, not the company, with no corporate veil in front of it. About our bank introduction service.
Grants are a separate matter and are not loans. Enterprise Singapore publishes what is available; nothing on this page is a grant application.
No collateral
Most SME term loans in Singapore are unsecured, which means no property, no equipment and no receivable is pledged against them. So the honest answer to “do I need collateral” is usually no.
But the risk does not evaporate because no asset was named. What replaces the collateral is a director’s personal guarantee: the company borrows, and the guaranteeing directors undertake to pay if it cannot. No asset is pledged up front, and the lender can still come after you personally.
That is the single most important sentence on this page, and it deserves more than a paragraph. Read what a personal guarantee actually commits you to.
The checklist
Requirements vary by lender and by facility, and a lender will ask for more if the file raises a question. But an application missing anything below is not ready to submit — and an incomplete file is one of the eight reasons applications get declined rather than queried.
For the initial assessment, none of this
To start a business financing enquiry, Myinfo Business can prefill your company identity and name, your name and an editable Corppass email. Enter your phone number and financing needs manually. It does not retrieve your income or Notice of Assessment. The document list above is what thelender needs at submission, once you have decided to go ahead. Start with Singpass.
How long it takes
It depends on the class of lender far more than on the size of the facility, and the clock only starts when the file is complete. A file that goes in missing a statement does not take longer — it stops, and restarts when the gap is filled.
Ask the bank for its current timeline
Check how long assessment takes after a complete application, which documents are outstanding, and when funds could be released after acceptance. Approval and disbursement are separate steps; an introduction does not set either date.
Lead Advisor only arranges bank introductions. The bank handles the application and confirms its own processing times.
Straight answers
From a bank, on an unsecured term loan, usually not yet — most want to see one to two years of trading first. That does not leave you with nothing. Government-supported facilities under Enterprise Singapore's Enterprise Financing Scheme treat young enterprises as their own category, non-bank lenders underwrite to a different appetite, and borrowing in a director's own name is a legitimate bridge. Which of those is right depends on your numbers, and all of them are subject to lender approval.
Not for an unsecured facility, which is what most SME term loans are. What replaces the collateral is a director's personal guarantee — no asset is pledged, but the guaranteeing directors are personally on the hook if the company defaults. That trade is the thing to understand before you sign, not the thing to discover afterwards.
In practice: six months of company bank statements, your latest financial statements, the latest Notice of Assessment for the company and for key directors, a current ACRA business profile, and identification and particulars for every guaranteeing director. Lenders ask for more depending on the facility, but a file missing any of these is not ready to submit.
Not necessarily, and this is where a lot of good applications are abandoned early. Lenders are underwriting the ability to service a repayment, which is a cash-flow question rather than an accounting-profit one. A company with modest paper profit and strong, consistent bank turnover often reads better than the reverse.
For commercial facilities, shareholding is one factor among many and each lender takes its own view. For government-supported facilities under the Enterprise Financing Scheme it is explicit: Enterprise Singapore requires at least 30% local equity held directly or indirectly by Singaporeans and/or Singapore PRs. Check their scheme page for the current position before relying on it.
No. An assessment with us is not an application, and nothing is submitted to any lender until you tell us to. Only a lender's own enquiry lands on your credit file — and once it does, Credit Bureau Singapore retains it for two years.
An assessment is not an application. Nothing goes to a lender until you say so.
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