The guarantee will enable the Leicester-based bank to provide more funding to smaller businesses.

The ENABLE Guarantee programme – which is a UK government-backed portfolio guarantee – was designed to encourage additional lending to smaller businesses.

The programme is open to all UK banks and UK branches of foreign banks which lend – or plan to lend – to viable SMEs operating in the UK.

Cambridge & Counties provides funding to SMEs in the North, Scotland, the Midlands, East Anglia, the South West and Wales.

“Two of the British Business Bank's objectives are to increase the diversity of funding suppliers for smaller businesses, and to reduce regional imbalances in access to finance across the UK,” said Reinald de Monchy, managing director for guarantee and wholesale solutions at British Business Bank.

“We, therefore, welcome this new ENABLE Guarantee facility with Cambridge & Counties Bank – a relatively new entrant to the market with a regional focus – which will help more UK smaller businesses get the funding they need to grow and succeed.”

Will German, chief risk officer at Cambridge & Counties Bank, added: “We are delighted to be working with the British Business Bank, which shares our objective of boosting the UK economy by helping to finance smaller businesses.

“This transaction is yet another significant milestone in our history as we move towards our sixth birthday.

“The ENABLE Guarantee allows us to extend our customer-centric approach, focusing on the professional and corporate property sectors.”