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Leicestershire’s Hike SEO, a digital marketing platform which guides small businesses with little to no knowledge of SEO to the top of search engine rankings, has secured a £250,000 intellectual property-backed loan from NatWest to support its growth plans.
The loan marks a significant milestone for the Midlands-based firm, which has acquired more than 10,000 users across the world since launching in 2017. With the funding, Hike is set to launch new AI-powered features over the next year, as it supports more small business owners to take charge of their SEO and improve their visibility on search engines.
Hike now plans to expand its team by up to 30% as it expands to support more small business owners to take control of their SEO.
NatWest launched IP-backed lending for high growth businesses at the start of 2024, enabling companies which are rich in IP but lacking in tangible assets to secure lending to supercharge their growth. The High Growth loan process uses valuations provided by the online IP identification and valuation platform developed by IP experts Inngot to identify and evaluate relevant assets which NatWest can take as security for loans.
Andrew Allen, Hike SEO’s Chief Executive (pictured), says: “We’re thrilled that Hike has secured an IP-backed loan from NatWest, which is a huge vote of confidence in the value of the software we have built. This funding will support the development of new AI-driven functionality, providing a simpler and better experience for small businesses handling their own SEO. Importantly, this loan allows us to achieve this growth without further diluting equity for existing shareholders. The support of NatWest and our Relationship Manager Chris has been fantastic throughout the process.”
Chris Garnett, NatWest’s Senior Relationship Manager, adds: “Since first meeting Andrew at Hike in May, I really bought into what the business was trying to achieve, helping SMEs take control of their own SEO. The IP loan funding was a great way for them to take the next step in their journey by leveraging their IP rather than diluting their ownership.”
Neil Bellamy, Head of Technology, Media and Telecoms at NatWest, comments: “Hike is exactly the sort of high growth, disruptive company that NatWest’s IP-backed loan is intended to benefit. Like so many of today’s growth companies, Hike needed help validating and unlocking the value locked up in its intellectual property and other intangibles. This solution is genuinely for the mass market, making lending affordable for fast growing, IP rich businesses to borrow as little as £250,000. Together with our partners Inngot, we’re disrupting the lending market for SMEs in the same way that Hike is disrupting SEO!”
Martin Brassell, CEO of Inngot, says: “Today, IP drives company growth and profitability. Few high growth companies have the kind of tangible assets traditional banks are still hoping to find. With NatWest and Inngot’s approach, these business-critical intangible assets can be properly taken into account, even at modest levels of lending. This points to the role IP can now play in supporting growth for scale-ups on their journey to maturity.”
