“Following a background in senior treasury and private equity-backed restructuring, I founded Lightbulb with the mission to help businesses access credit profiles that reflect their true position.”
James Piper | CEO | Lightbulb
The role of business credit ratings
Understanding the impact of business credit ratings is more important than ever, and can have a tangible and immediate benefit. This is where our free Company Credit Insight Report helps shine a light.
The evolution of Lightbulb Credit
2018
James Piper, our CEO, founded Lightbulb in 2018. He collaborated with the UK’s leading trade credit rating agencies to develop a solution; this allows businesses to confidentially share additional data via Lightbulb under a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).
Lightbulb’s service gained traction through James’ network, evolving from an “itch he had to scratch” into a valuable offering for clients.
2019
Olek Smith joined the company as Chief Operating Officer, marking a strategic focus on growth. Olek’s previous collaboration with James within a private equity-backed group reinforces their friendship and shared work ethic.
Lightbulb began the development of a unique Credit Monitoring service. A group of clients were picked to test and shape the features and content of this valuable service.
2020
Lightbulb extended its assistance to progressively smaller companies, by introducing “Micro” and “Lite” services. This expansion initiated partnerships and relationships with brokers, funders, accountants, and professional advisors.
2021
A significant tech investment triggered the automation of the free Company Credit Insight Report. This development enabled Lightbulb to scale, leading to a continuous increase in the number and size of partnerships.
2023
Foresight Group invested in Lightbulb, following the success of improving the agency’s view of several of their portfolio businesses. This provided essential funding for the next phase of growth.
Lightbulb introduced its scenario service. Multiple outcomes related to trading numbers, balance sheets, board changes, debt and equity conversions, ownership alterations, and other intricate scenarios can be shared. Businesses can now identify, plan, and manage the impacts on key trade credit ratings.
Lightbulb also achieved the ISO 27001 certification, which highlights Lightbulb’s commitment to maintaining the highest standards of information security management systems.
2024
Launched Lightbulb’s unique portal and monitoring services, empowering businesses to track and proactively manage their credit ratings.
2025
Lightbulb welcomed Jacob Abraham as a Business Consultant to drive continued growth and strengthen operational stability, as well as growing the credit analyst team.
Here are some of the businesses we’ve supported to achieve enhanced creditworthiness
