More than €1.2 billion had been advanced to businesses in Ireland through invoice finance at the end of Q4 2025, up 1.6% year on year, according to the latest figures from Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI). The increase came despite a 3.3% fall in the number of firms using these facilities, which declined to 1,351 at the end of December 2025. Invoice finance is a working capital or revolving credit facility, used by both SMEs and larger businesses, to release cash tied up in outstanding customer invoices.
The following are the key figures from the report:
Funds advanced
- More than €1.2 billion was advanced by participating lenders to client businesses at the end of Q4 2025, an increase of 1.6% year on year.
Funds available
- he total funds available to businesses rose by 9.5% year-on-year, reaching almost €3.0 billion at Q4 2025.
Average funds advanced per client business
- Average funds advanced per client business increased slightly from less than €0.9 million to more than €0.9 million at the end of December 2025.
Clients’ sales
- Total quarterly client sales reached over €11.6 billion in Q4 2025, a 3.0% increase year on year.
Average number of debtor days
- The average number of debtor days outstanding rose from 40 in Q4 2024 to 42 days in Q4 2025.
Commenting on today’s figures, Brian Hayes, Chief Executive, BPFI said:
“More than €1.2 billion was advanced by participating lenders to client businesses through invoice finance in Q4 2025, an increase of 1.6% year on year. At the same time, the total funds available to businesses rose by 9.5%, reaching almost €3.0 billion, pointing to continued demand for this type of finance. Our members are seeing take-up across a broad range of sectors, particularly manufacturing, agriculture, transport and logistics, services and recruitment.”
Mr Hayes added:
“Average funds advanced per client business also increased slightly, from less than €0.9 million to more than €0.9 million at the end of December 2025. It is also worth noting that total client sales increased by 3.0% year on year to almost €11.7 billion in Q4 2025. As the sales ledger is used to secure access to funds, business growth can in turn support greater availability of finance. At the same time, the rise in debtor days, from an average of 40 to 42 days year on year, may increase demand for working capital support.”
He concluded: "These latest figures highlight the continued importance of invoice finance as a source of working capital for SMEs and larger companies across the Irish economy. By enabling firms to release funds tied up in unpaid invoices, it can play a valuable role in supporting cash flow, liquidity and growth.”
