Asset Finance New Business Rises 14% in April: What It Means for Capital Asset Valuations

The UK asset finance market has posted its strongest monthly result in recent memory. According to the latest data from the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA), new business grew by 14% in April 2026 compared with the same month in 2025.

For those working in capital asset valuation, management and advisory, this is data worth paying attention to. A 14% uplift in new finance transactions reflects a significant shift in how businesses are approaching their capital base.

The Numbers in Context

Total new asset finance business reached £3.74 billion in April 2026. Over the first four months of the year, new business ran 6% ahead of the equivalent period in 2025, and across the trailing twelve months, the market has grown by 4%.

The sector-level data is where things become particularly instructive:

Plant and machinery finance: up 36% year-on-year in April

Business car finance: up 18%

Commercial vehicle finance: up 5%

Finance leasing: up 35%

SME lending: up 8%; larger business lending: up 26%

The plant and machinery figure is notable. A 36% increase in a single month represents a significant volume of equipment entering service and by extension, a significant volume of capital assets being created, acquired, and placed on balance sheets across UK businesses.

What This Means for Asset Values

A 14% uplift in new finance volumes is a signal of lender confidence and a leading indicator of secondary market activity to come. Every asset financed today has an end-of-term position attached to it. As transaction volumes rise across plant and machinery, commercial vehicles, and business equipment, the pool of assets approaching lease expiry, refinancing, or disposal will grow proportionally over the coming years. For anyone managing a portfolio with residual value exposure, that matters now, not at end of term.

The plant and machinery figure warrants particular attention. A 36% year-on-year increase in finance transactions across that asset class represents a substantial injection of equipment into UK businesses, much of it specialist with meaningful, but market-sensitive, residual values. In our experience, this is the category where the gap between an optimistic book value and a defensible, market-evidenced valuation tends to be widest, particularly where technology cycles or sector-specific demand fluctuations are in play.

The lending split between SMEs and larger businesses is also instructive. A 26% uplift in larger business lending points to an increase in higher-value and more complex transactions, such as the kind where collateral quality, accurate asset identification, and independent valuation support are not incidental to the deal, but central to it. For lenders writing that business and lessors managing those portfolios, the quality of the underlying valuation work directly affects credit decisions, covenant headroom, and ultimately, recovery outcomes.

Finance leasing volumes up 35% add a further layer. Where operating risk stays with the lessor, residual value assumptions are baked into pricing from day one. A market that is actively growing its finance lease book is a market that is accumulating residual value exposure, and that exposure needs to be grounded in current market evidence, not historic benchmarks.

“The asset finance market made a strong start to the second quarter, underlining the sector’s resilience as businesses continue to invest despite a more uncertain economic backdrop.”
— Geraldine Kilkelly, Director of Research and Chief Economist, Finance & Leasing Association

Resilience Despite Headwinds

The FLA’s chief economist was measured in her assessment, noting that cost pressures and geopolitical uncertainty continue to weigh on business confidence. Higher energy prices and persistent interest rate levels are testing affordability across the board.

The ONS confirmed that UK business investment increased by 0.7% in Q1 2026 but remains 1.8% below the level seen in the same quarter in 2025. That tension between asset finance market growth and broader business investment caution is precisely the kind of nuanced backdrop against which accurate, independent asset valuations become even more important.

When businesses are under financial pressure, the precision of a balance sheet matters. Lenders need confidence in the collateral underpinning their facilities and corporates refinancing or restructuring need to know what their assets are worth. For those managing portfolios of leased or financed equipment, the difference between an optimistic in-house estimate and a defensible, market-evidenced valuation can be material.

“A 14% rise in asset finance new business is a genuinely positive signal for the UK economy, and for our sector specifically. When businesses commit capital to plant, machinery, and equipment at this scale, it creates both opportunity and complexity across the valuation landscape. At Hickman Shearer, we see this as exactly the kind of market environment where rigorous, RICS-regulated valuation advice adds the most value. The numbers look encouraging, the need for precision only grows with them.”
James Fox – Senior Director, Hickman Shearer

The Valuation Imperative in an Active Market

An active asset finance market is good for the broader economy. UK businesses are investing in productive capacity, replacing aging equipment, and backing their own growth, however activity generates complexity, and complexity generates the need for expertise.

At Hickman Shearer, we work with lenders, lessors, and corporate clients across a wide range of sectors from manufacturing and plant to electronics, broadcast, transport, and beyond. The FLA data reinforces what we see in the market: deal volumes are up, asset types are diversifying, and the need for credible, independent, RICS-regulated valuation advice is growing accordingly.

Whether you are writing new facilities, reviewing existing portfolios, managing end-of-lease positions, or working through a restructuring, the quality of the underlying valuation directly affects the quality of the decision.

Looking Ahead

The FLA data suggests the asset finance market is well-positioned to support business investment through the remainder of 2026, with inflation stabilising and the interest rate outlook gradually clarifying. If plant and machinery finance continues to grow at anything close to its April pace, secondary market supply will increase.

We will continue to monitor sector-level data and secondary market conditions across all the asset classes we cover. If you would like to discuss how current market conditions affect the value of your asset portfolio, or if you are writing new facilities and need independent valuation support, we would be happy to talk: Contact Us

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