Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Latest UK Finance data has highlighted that £3.5 billion was lent to SMEs in the fourth quarter of 2023 – the first quarter not to see a fall since Q2 2022. Figures from banking trade body UK Finance show that lending to SMEs fell for a third consecutive year in 2023. Gross lending to SMEs…
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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) grew in January 2024 by 8% compared with the same month in 2023. In the twelve months to January 2024, new business was 12% higher than in the same period in 2023. The…
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The Financial Conduct Authority has said it will investigate the practice of requiring personal guarantees from directors of some small businesses when banks lend to them. The move comes in response to a ‘super-complaint’ made in November by the Federation of Small Businesses, which claimed that excessive requirements for personal guarantees were a ‘straitjacket’ on…
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The British Business Bank’s Small Business Finance Markets 2023/24 report reveals that asset finance has grown for the third consecutive year, reaching a record high of £23.5bn in 2023, increasing by 7%/ The increase follows a rise of 11% in 2022 and 23% in 2021 and highlights the continued rebound in the asset class as…
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13% of small business owners have backed out of a loan due to the demand for a personal guarantee according to new research by Purbeck Personal Guarantee Insurance. Purbeck says there is a concerning lack of understanding of personal guarantees in the context of business loans amongst small businesses. The survey found that although 30%…
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High banking charges are a bigger blocker to international expansion for businesses than Brexit red tape, according to survey research by Wise. The analysis found that UK small businesses lost £2.8 billion to hidden fees, preventing 69% from expanding further. Business owners said they struggle to compare the market due to a ‘corporate opt out’ that…
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EY Item Club is predicting that bank lending is expected to remain subdued this year, with elevated interest rates tamping appetite for borrowing. The report says that bank lending to businesses will rise by only 0.8% amid weak demand for credit and restrictive borrowing costs. EY says that although the Bank of England is expected…
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New figures by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that total asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) fell in December 2023 by 1% compared with the same month in 2022. In 2023 as a whole, new business was 12% higher than in the same period in 2022. The industry supported investment…
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A survey on the state of small business finances by Purbeck Personal Guarantee Insurance has uncovered that despite a turbulent year in 2023 with high inflation and geopolitical unrest knocking consumer confidence, almost a third of small businesses (31%) are making a good profit and 45% are in profit by a small margin. 18% say they are…
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Asset-based lending specialist, Cynergy Business Finance (CBF) has announced the appointment of Dave Green as Corporate Sales Director. Green, a well-known business finance professional in the North West, brings almost 25 years of experience within the asset-based lending sector, having previously worked as a Business Development Manager for nearly 15 years at RBS Invoice Finance,…
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New research from Bibby Foreign Exchange (BFX) has found that UK SMEs trading abroad remain hamstrung by circumstances borne out of Brexit, as the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union (EU) approaches its four-year anniversary. Data from BFX’s 2024 Trading Places report finds that more than half (55%) see the ongoing impact of Brexit as a significant challenge, ranking…
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MPs on the Treasury Committee have warned that SMEs face “gaps” in banking dispute resolution when an independent compensation scheme closes, questioning whether the Financial Ombudsman Service’s (FOS) jurisdiction is appropriate to handle cases from the Business Banking Resolution Service (BBRS). MP John Baron said there was “uncertainty around the future of dispute resolution services…
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Quantuma appointed administrators of peer-to-peer (P2P) lender ABLRate. Brian Burke, Sean Bucknall and Andrew Hosking from business advisory firm Quantuma as Joint Administrators of the P2P lending platform Aviation and Tech Capital Limited and ABLRate Assets Limited have operated a Peer to Peer (P2P) lending platform and facilitated crowdfunded loans which were used to finance…
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