FIRMS in Wiltshire are increasingly turning to digital lenders to grow their business, according to a report by peer-to-peer lender Funding Circle.

In 2018, small businesses in Wiltshire got £17m in loans through the digital lending platform Funding Circle.

The company added that as bank branches decrease digital lenders are picking up the slack.

It found Wiltshire was sixth in the top 10 financial technology hotspots, behind major urban areas like Liverpool and Manchester, but ahead of areas such as Brighton and Hove and Sheffield.

Peer-to-peer lending creates a network of investors who lend money to firms and earn interest in return.

James Meekings, UK managing director of Funding Circle, said: “Small businesses drive much-needed job creation and power our local economies on an incredible scale.

"While bank lending to large firms has increased by 43 per cent over the past three years, it’s decreased to small businesses by three per cent.

"That’s why helping them to grow is at the forefront of our mission; and it’s incredibly rewarding to know that when £1 is lent through our platform, small businesses contribute an additional £2 to our economy.”