Some of the U.K.’s digital lenders to small businesses have reportedly reached profitability more quickly than consumer-focused FinTechs.

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That’s according to a report Thursday (Oct. 15) by the Financial Times (FT), which said this trend comes as small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) turn to these neobanks for funding as traditional lenders turn them down.

Now, some SMB lenders are also considering international expansion, including applying for banking licenses and opening branches overseas, sources familiar with the matter told the FT.

The report cited Bank of England data showing that lending to U.K. businesses has dropped to its lowest level for nearly three decades, while SMB loans fell from representing 12% of GDP in 2011 to 6.5% this year.

Christoph Rieche, co-founder and CEO of digital bank Iwoca, told the FT that the growth of small business lenders like his shows that SMB lending can be profitable.

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“There are millions of small businesses in the U.K., in Germany, where we’re operating and … there is such a big group [of SMBs] that are so badly served or not served at all,” Rieche said. “We probably get about 40,000–50,000 applications per month, so there’s a lot of demand for finance that is at large not being served.”

The report added that a key selling point for these digital lenders is speed, with many touting that they can write a loan in a fraction of the time it takes a big bank, as well as their ability to cater to businesses that larger banks might consider too small.

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