Rural Asset Finance proud to sponsor 2026 LAMMA Innovation Awards

“We love a brilliant idea,” says Rural Asset Finance CEO Matthew Smart. “It’s great to see someone solving a problem or finding a new way to do something that makes things better for everyone. This creative type of thinking happens in farming every single day, so it’s great for our industry to be able to celebrate it.”

It is why the Rural Asset Finance team are not just looking forward to the upcoming LAMMA Innovation Awards – they are the main sponsor.

“Agriculture is full of innovation,” says Matthew, “but many people outside our industry don’t realise just how literally ground-breaking some of the technology is.

“Farming throws up daily, unpredictable situations, yet our industry is constantly finding solutions round all these daily challenges, and it does it so well – with brilliant creativity and outstanding tech. The LAMMA Innovation Awards shine a much-deserved light on all of this and we’re very proud to celebrate and support it.”

Matthew added that many of these innovations could end up having a huge impact on British farming, whether in terms of cost, efficiency or sustainability – or all three. “There’s potential there to be a real game-changer,” he said.

‘We make human decisions based on the people at the heart of the business’

The same could be said about Rural Asset Finance, whose own innovations have changed the agri-finance landscape, giving simple access to long-term secured loans and equipment finance within the same RAF account – and providing welcome support to thousands of farmers to fund new projects and revenue streams.

As a non-bank lender direct to farmers throughout the UK, Rural Asset Finance offers fixed-rate, fixed- term loans and equipment purchase agreements secured on land and buildings, as well as funds for equipment through hire purchase or lease.

But uniquely, the team all have farming backgrounds – so they understand the ups and downs that farmers face and can tailor repayment terms to reflect the ebbs and flows of each individual business.

“A lot of traditional lenders use algorithms to make their credit decisions,” Matthew said. “So quite often farmers, by the way they traditionally present their accounts, come up against this brick wall of ‘computer says no’.

“But we make human decisions based on the people at the heart of the business. We obviously do our due diligence and carry out all the necessary checks, but we get to know the farmers and truly understand their business and how it actually works on a day-to-day basis.

“We all have farming experience, we speak your language, we understand exactly what life on the land is like, and that it throws up unexpected challenges and that you have to deal with them. And because we understand, we are always working with our customers to agree terms that work for them.

“It’s hugely satisfying to be able to help others to realise their vision for their farm’s future – whether that’s funding machines, buildings, land purchases, technology, renewable energy, diversification. The bottom line is we love talking to farmers about farming.”

Building these relationships, Rural Asset Finance funds anything and everything related to agricultural business. And its own innovation doesn’t end there – having sales, operations, credit and legal teams in-house mean agreements can be signed and funds deposited in customers accounts much more quickly than traditional lenders.

And like the LAMMA Award winners, Rural Asset Finance’s ground-breaking way of doing business has also been recognised. In 2025 the company was honoured to become a delivery partner and lender to be approved for the government-backed British Business Bank’s ENABLE Guarantee Scheme, which was set up to help smaller businesses access fair finance by providing specialist lenders with a government-backed guarantee.

“We’re proud to have created something different that opens up so many opportunities to help Britain’s farmers,” says Matthew. “We’ve seen how taking a new approach has changed farmers’ lives and enabled them to take on projects and realise dreams that often wouldn’t be possible through other lenders.

“That’s why sponsoring the LAMMA Innovation Awards is such a perfect fit for us – many of these award-winners have created something that changes the game for farmers. We’re delighted to recognise innovations that will have such a huge benefit to our industry – and we can’t wait to meet people at the 2026 LAMMA show.”

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