YouLend and Just Eat surpass €150m in embedded finance for European restaurants

YouLend and Just Eat Takeaway.com have provided more than €150m in financing to restaurants and takeaway businesses across seven European markets, highlighting the growing role of embedded finance in supporting SME working capital and expansion.

The companies said the programme has delivered more than 13,500 financings since launch, covering merchants in the UK, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Poland.

The partnership was initially launched in the UK in 2022 as hospitality businesses emerged from Covid-related disruption and faced rising inflation, energy costs and tighter access to traditional lending. Eligible merchants can access funding directly through the Just Eat platform via a digital application process integrated into the merchant experience.

According to the companies, repeat borrowers have generated more financing activity than first-time users, suggesting that embedded finance is increasingly being used as an ongoing working capital tool rather than solely as emergency funding.

Restaurants have used the financing for purposes including equipment purchases, recruitment, expansion projects and managing short-term cashflow requirements.

Leonard Strigel, general manager Europe at YouLend, said long-term financing relationships were becoming part of business growth strategies rather than one-off borrowing decisions.

Bart van der Veldt, director strategy and planning commercial at Just Eat Takeaway.com, said embedded financing had enabled thousands of restaurant partners to access capital quickly through the platform.

The milestone highlights the continued expansion of embedded finance models across Europe, where lenders are increasingly integrating funding products directly into payment, e-commerce and marketplace platforms. For SME finance providers, the trend reflects growing demand for faster access to capital and funding solutions linked to real-time trading activity.