Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Dun & Bradstreet has published its country insight report into the United Kingdom, which looks at the adverse effects of the coronavirus on the country’s business environment. The report has downgraded the UK’s country risk rating by two quartiles to DB3b (a new all-time low) as the coronavirus pandemic continues to adversely impact opportunities for…
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The Government has announced a raft of new measures for self-employed workers. These included: Self-employed people will be able to apply for a grant worth 80% of their average monthly profits over the last three years, up to £2,500 a month. At least half their income needs to have come from self-employment as registered on…
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Businesses will be given an additional three months to file accounts with Companies House to help companies avoid penalties as they deal with the impact of COVID-19. The joint initiative between the government and Companies House will mean businesses can prioritise managing the impact of Coronavirus. There are approximately 4.3 million businesses on the Companies…
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The Institute of Directors (IoD) is calling for emergency insolvency measures to prevent widespread company collapses. Under current laws, the board of directors has a strict duty to cease trading if the company is facing insolvency, and may face personal financial or legal liabilities at a later date if they seek finance instead of doing…
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UK small business’ previous positivity about their future performance is being overshadowed by stress, anxiety and sleepless nights over access to finance according to research from fintech specialist, Liberis. While an encouraging 61% of small businesses in the UK questioned before the Coronavirus outbreak were confident of success in 2021 and beyond, mental health and…
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With coronavirus already affecting businesses, new research from Nucleus Commercial Finance reveals that prior to the virus having an impact, nearly half of SMEs (47%) predicted their finances would keep them running for a month if they were suddenly and unexpectedly unable to trade. This means that 2.67m small businesses may already be struggling with…
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Business finance lender MarketFinance sought the views of business owners following the wide-ranging measures announced by the Treasury recently. Despite the sizeable fiscal stimulus, more than two thirds (67%) believe funds will not reach them in time and they will run out of cash before Easter (12th April). Only half (52%) of UK businesses are…
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A new Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) has been opened to smaller businesses. The scheme can provide facilities of up to £5 million for smaller businesses across the UK who are experiencing lost or deferred revenues, leading to disruptions to their cashflow. Although the Budget announced that an initial £1.2 billion of government-backed lending…
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The incomes of self-employed people are ‘falling like a stone’ amidst economic disruption caused by Covid-19, according to charity the Money Advice Trust, which runs the Business Debtline advice service. The warning comes after Chancellor Rishi Sunak told MPs that constructing a scheme to protect the self-employed who are losing work because of the Coronavirus…
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Accounts payable teams have the power to halt the rise in fraud during the current crisis according to FISCAL Technologies. The company says tackling financial fraud is more important now than ever – the key is the ability to maintain order and efficiency The ongoing impact of the coronavirus outbreak has seen an increase in…
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The Bank of England has cut interest rates again in an emergency move as it tries to support the UK economy in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. It is the second cut in interest rates in just over a week, bringing them down to 0.1% from 0.25%. Interest rates are now at the lowest…
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The estimated total bill to taxpayers for responding to the collapse of Thomas Cook is at least £156 million, with some costs not yet known, a new National Audit Office (NAO) report has found. Thomas Cook collapsed on 23rd September 2019 and all flight and holiday bookings were cancelled, leaving an estimated 150,000 customers potentially…
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Laura Ashley has filed for administration after failing to secure £15 million of emergency cash to stay afloat. The move puts around 2,700 jobs at risk.The company said that owner MUI Asia was not willing to provide the extra cash, and could not secure a loan from elsewhere. In a statement the company said “The…
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