New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) fell in June by 3% compared with the same month in 2017, but grew by 5% in the second quarter of 2018 as a whole. The commercial vehicle finance and IT equipment finance sectors…
Small firms are finding it increasingly costly to raise new finance, according to the latest research from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). The findings were announced ahead of a Bank of England (BoE) decision to raise interest rates to 0.75% Four in ten (42%) small firms describe new credit as ‘unaffordable’ in Q3 2018,…
UK Finance has published its latest business lending figures for June. Key data highlights include: Lending to manufacturers grew by 9.2 per cent in the last 12 months, in contrast to a wider 1.8 per cent contraction overall in UK business borrowing. UK business deposits for non-financial companies grew by 2.3 per cent in the…
New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that new business in the point of sale (POS) consumer new car finance market grew 15% by value and 10% by volume in May, compared with the same month in 2017. The percentage of private new car sales financed by FLA members through the…
The leasing sector needs to become more agile to meet the needs of an increasingly important and ‘entitled’ SME sector. This is the observation from financial software experts Copernicus’ MD Allen Jones reflecting upon a cultural and technical change that is emerging rapidly in the business community. “While there has been much written and reported about…
Hitachi Capital UK has announced it has acquired of Franchise Finance, a specialist financial services provider to the franchising industry. The transaction boosts Hitachi Capital UK’s lending base to SMEs and franchisees, bringing considerable senior consultancy experience to the Group and helping to build a profitable portfolio within an underserved market. The acquisition also enables…
An independent study commissioned by Dun & Bradstreet reveals a UK business community that believes it has already lost out due to the EU referendum. When asked how the Brexit process has affected business finances, 43% of business leaders say they have felt a negative financial impact since the Brexit vote. More than a third…
The Number of new loans to SMEs has increased in Quarter 1 according to new figures from UK Finance Commenting on the data, Stephen Pegge, Managing Director, Commercial at UK Finance said “The number of new approved loans to SMEs grew slightly in the first quarter of the year, driven in part by increased demand…
New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) fell by 5% in March, compared with the same month last year, and by 3% in Q1 2018 overall. New finance for business equipment grew in March by 13% compared with the same month…
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has announced changes to the definition of income between consumer hire leases and consumer credit after a response to its consultation. In December of last year, the FCA made a call for leasing businesses to respond to the regulator. Under the current rule, FCA fees for regulated credit agreements such…