Chicago-based small business lending firm LQD Business Finance said it has closed a $30 million credit facility with Route 66 Ventures. The credit facility will help LQD accelerate growth and expand lending operations nationally.

“We are thrilled at closing this deal, and could not have better partners moving forward than the team at Route 66,” said George Souri, LQD’s CEO.

LQD uses a proprietary risk management and underwriting software called LQD Matrix, which improves upon existing underwriting techniques by considering loan structure and price as fundamental risk factors when assessing the risk of each potential loan. This capability allows LQD to offer more options to small businesses at lower rates, while also enabling the company to manage risk more effectively.

Route 66 Ventures is a private investment firm which makes venture capital and credit investments in emerging financial services companies. The investment team is a group of former operators of successful specialty finance and technology companies, with deep experience in capital markets, risk management, finance, marketing and strategy formulation.