Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Global demand for pharmaceuticals remains strong, but the UK will need to reassess impending risks, according to leading credit insurer, Atradius. Throughout 2020, the UK’s pharmaceutical industry surged its value-added output by 13.6% – leading to a 13% boost above the 2019 pre-pandemic level. And although year-on-year growth in this sector levelled off in 2021,…
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Faced with a more uncertain economic climate, 98% of Chief Finance Officers (CFOs) anticipate operating costs to rise in the year ahead, according to a survey by Deloitte with almost half of CFOs (46%) expecting these rises to be significant. Deloitte says that in light of cost increases, there has also been a sharp deterioration…
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An economic research report by Atradius has found that many developing countries are facing a triple crisis in 2022 with the impact of the pandemic is being felt across the globe, particularly in small island economies which have historically been heavily reliant on tourism. Existing debt vulnerabilities were only aggravated by the pandemic. With global…
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Small businesses are under increasing pressure, with delays in payments and staff shortages on the rise, according to research by accountancy software firm Xero. The data reveals that late payment times continue to surge. In February, small businesses had to wait an average of 30.5 days to be paid by their customers from when an…
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A study by energy analysts Cornwall Insight shows that SMEs have already seen average gas bills climb more than 250% between the first three months of 2021 and Q1 2022. Analysts looked at delivered gas prices businesses pay on a 1-year acquisition fixed tariff, calculating how much they may pay in future if energy prices…
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The government must do more to recover taxes that went unpaid during the pandemic, a group of MPs has said. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) says the Covid-19 pandemic has changed the nature and scale of tax debt creating an enormous task for HMRC to bring tax debt back from the current mountain of £39…
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Business Minister Paul Scully has announced the launch of a new law to help resolve remaining commercial rent debts accrued because of the pandemic. The ‘Commercial Rent (Coronavirus) Act 2022’ received Royal Assent means that a legally binding arbitration process will be available for eligible commercial landlords and tenants who have not already reached an…
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Restaurant insolvencies increases by a fifth to reach highest levels since pandemic began according to new research by UHY Hacker Young. The data shows that restaurant insolvencies rose to 354 in the last quarter of 2021, up from 296 in the previous three-month period. UHY Hacker Young says that restaurants will also have to contend…
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Cash management platform Satago has announced that it has partnered with Lloyds Bank with an aim to transform access to short-term finance for its business customers. The agreement builds on the existing partnership, extending the use of Satago’s technology to help Lloyds Bank customers get access to cash against invoices due. It will power a…
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Irish Government pandemic support has saved at least 4,500 Irish companies from going bust according to research by PwC. The figures represent an average of 50 companies saved every week during the pandemic. PwC examined 18,000 business failures over the past 17 years and measured the correlation between key economic indicators and other trends with…
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Three in five (58 per cent) small or medium enterprises (SMEs) across the UK are currently waiting on late payments from customers, according to research from Barclays surveying 500 small business owners. For medium sized enterprises with 50 to 249 staff, those waiting on late payments rises to more than nine in ten (94 per…
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Five high profile companies Diageo Scotland, Diageo Global Supply IBC, Diageo Northern Ireland, Diageo Great Britain and Unilever UK have been formally removed from the Prompt Payment Code (PPC) after failing to honour their commitments. The voluntary code requires companies to pay 95% of invoices within 30 days to their small suppliers and pay 95%…
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Research by Sage shows that more than three-quarters of SMEs expect to return to pre-pandemic levels of profitability in the next 12 months. The poll by the accounting and payroll technology provider also found that two in five smaller businesses expected to hire more people in 2022, with half of those planning to increase their…
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