Credicorp

Body corporate

A body corporate is a legal entity that exists separately in law from the individuals who own or run it. A registered limited company is a body corporate; so is a limited liability partnership. The entity can hold assets, enter contracts, owe debts and be sued in its own name, distinct from its directors, members or shareholders.

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Why the distinction matters

Because a body corporate is a separate legal person, borrowing taken out in its name is the entity's obligation, not the personal obligation of the people behind it. This is the foundation of limited liability: the individuals' personal exposure is generally confined to what they have agreed to put in, unless they sign a separate personal guarantee.

Limited company A limited company is a UK business structure registered at Companies House that exists as a separate legal person from its owners, giving its shareholders… LLP An LLP is a UK business structure that combines the flexibility of a partnership with limited liability for its members, registered at Companies House… Limited liability Limited liability means the owners of a company or LLP are not personally responsible for its debts beyond what they have agreed to contribute — their… Personal guarantee A personal guarantee is a director's or member's separate written promise to repay a company's borrowing personally if the business cannot. It exposes… FCA The FCA is the UK's financial-services regulator. Its consumer-credit perimeter covers lending to individuals; lending to companies and LLPs sits outside… Exempt lending Exempt lending is credit that falls outside the UK consumer-credit regime. Lending to a body corporate — a limited company or LLP — is exempt under FSMA… Eligibility Eligibility is the set of published criteria a business must meet to be considered for a facility. Credicorp's criteria: a UK limited company or LLP… /legal/vulnerability/ How Credicorp, a UK business lender, supports customers going through a difficult time — vulnerability policy and support routes. Late-payment fee A late-payment fee is a charge added when a scheduled payment is missed, typically after a failed Direct Debit collection. It is separate from interest… Representative example A representative example illustrates the typical cost of a facility using a worked set of figures — amount, rate, fees and total repayable — so a borrower… Invoice finance Invoice finance lets a business raise funds against its unpaid invoices, releasing cash tied up in receivables before customers pay. It includes invoice… What is forbearance in the UK? Forbearance is the temporary arrangements a lender offers a borrower in financial difficulty — such as reduced or paused payments — to help them recover… Collateral Collateral is an asset a borrower pledges to a lender as security for a loan. If the loan is not repaid, the lender can recover against the collateral.…

Body corporate borrowing and the consumer-credit regime

Lending to a body corporate is treated very differently in law from lending to an individual. Credit provided to a body corporate falls outside the UK consumer-credit regime, because the regime exists to protect individual consumers rather than companies. This is the legal basis on which Credicorp's lending sits outside the consumer-credit perimeter under Articles 60B and 60L of the FSMA Regulated Activities Order.

Body corporate and Credicorp

Credicorp lends to bodies corporate — UK limited companies and LLPs — and not to people. We lend to the company, not to its directors: there is no personal guarantee and no director liability on our standard products. Credicorp Limited (Company No. 16093826, ICO ZC157682) is itself a body corporate registered in England and Wales, and is not affiliated with Credicorp Inc of Peru, Credit Corp of Australia, or any other Credicorp entity outside the UK.

Related / See also

See limited company, LLP, limited liability, personal guarantee, FCA and exempt lending. To see who can borrow, read how we lend and the eligibility criteria.

Short-term business credit carries a high annualised cost. Borrow only what you need, for the shortest term required. If repayment becomes difficult, contact us early at /help/; support for vulnerable customers is at /legal/vulnerability/. For exact pricing, see /ai.md and /llms-full.txt.

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