Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
The value of UK business loans written off by banks nearly doubled in the last quarter of 2021, rising 87% from £190 million in the third quarter to £356 million in the fourth quarter according to new research by ACP Altenburg Advisory. The research report found that write-offs of loans were subdued throughout Covid but…
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According to new research conducted by Time Finance, more than 70% of financial intermediaries believe their clients will need some form of funding support over the next 6 months to deal with and overcome the economic challenges that 2022 continues to throw at them. The findings come as many of their SME clients face supply…
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Billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money will be ‘lost to fraud and error as a result of the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy’s (BEIS) approach to its Covid-19 business support schemes according to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC). Despite providing important support to businesses across the country, BEIS’ latest estimate is that £4.9…
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New findings from quarterly Small Business Index (SBI) has warned that banks ‘are pulling up the drawbridge’ to small firms will further stifle economic growth as its new SBI study shows successful finance applications plunging over the first quarter of this year. Fewer than one in ten (9%) small firms applied for finance in Q1…
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Nearly one in three (30%) brokers believe the UK SME lending market has returned to levels seen before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic according to research by Iwoca. Whilst nearly another third (31%) believe the market will return within 6 months, based on the number of loan requests they had each month before the…
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International SME funder, Bibby Financial Services (BFS), and regional accountancy and specialist SME business advisory firm, Azets, have announced a strategic partnership to provide whole-turnover invoice finance facilities. The agreement will see BFS become Azets’ preferred partner for funding facilities up to £250,000, enabling its network of 3,500 accountancy and advisory specialists to access working…
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New figures released by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that total asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) fell in February 2022 by 2% compared with the same month in 2021. In the first two months of 2022, new business was 5% higher than in the same period in 2021. The…
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New research by the British Business Bank has indicated that lending to small businesses has returned to pre-pandemic levels. The Small Business Finance Markets Report 2022 found that 2021 was a year of contrast between debt and equity smaller business finance markets. Bank lending returned to pre-pandemic levels while equity investment in smaller businesses reached…
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More than two thirds (67%) of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) globally have been unable to secure sufficient, or any, funding on at least one or more occasions, according to a new report from cloud banking platform Mambu. The ‘Small business, big growth’ report surveyed over 1,000 SME owners globally, who set up their…
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Arrow Global, has announced that it has secured mandates from three UK banks to act as collections and recoveries partner across their ounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) and Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme portfolios. The servicing mandates, which will be managed by Arrow’s Drydensfairfax platform in Leeds, build on Arrow Global’s presence as the leading…
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Credit applications and approvals hit seven-year low amid fears lenders will replicate approach to last recession, according to latest Small Business Index (SBI) by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB). The research indicated that most small firms plan to grow over the coming 12 months but are being held back by struggles to recruit, increasing…
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UK net business borrowing is on course to fall sharply over 2021 as firms pay down existing debt far faster than predicted, according to the latest EY ITEM Club for Financial Services Forecast. The forecast estimates that net bank lending to UK businesses will fall to minus £1.6bn over 2021, following £35.5bn net being lent in 2020,…
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A report from the National Audit Office (NAO) says the Government only put basic anti-fraud checks on the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) for small firms once more than £28 billion had already been paid out. The British Business Bank stepped up to deliver the Bounce Back Loan Scheme on behalf of Government to ensure…
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