The value of bad debt suffered by small businesses has surged by a staggering 127 per cent in the last six months, according to a report by SME funder, Bibby Financial Services (BFS). According to the latest SME Confidence Tracker from Bibby, businesses have written-off an average of nearly £40,000 in unpaid invoices in the…
Read moreSMEs are switching to monthly payments for insurance bills as premium increases put pressure on their businesses according to new research Premium Credit. The research showed that 43% value the ability to pay for insurance monthly through premium finance or finance offered by insurers compared with 32% who prefer to pay in a lump sum.…
Read moreLeonard Curtis has announced it has acquired Newsource Commercial Finance (NCF) is a broker in the commercial property sector. Led by a management team of Mark Craven and Brian Walters, the business specialises in working with brokers and their clients on sourcing finance across residential BTL and property portfolios, commercial property investments, property developments, refurbishment…
Read morePremium Credit has announced it has appointed Rohit Ghai as its Chief Risk Officer. Ghai will lead Premium Credit’s Risk, Compliance and Legal functions as the business proudly supports its community of customers and partners in creating opportunities through convenient payments. Ghai joins Premium Credit from PayPal UK, where he was most recently the interim…
Read moreThe construction industry experienced the highest number of insolvencies in the 12 months to August 2024, reaching a total of 4,310 according to latest Insolvency Service data for September 2024. Commenting on the latest construction insolvency statistics Kelly Boorman, National Head of Construction at RSM UK, said “The latest rise in construction insolvencies comes amidst a number…
Read moreLatest Red Flag Alert research has highlighted the challenging conditions UK businesses continue to face, with the number of companies facing ‘significant’ financial distress up 5% in Q3 2024 to 632,756 businesses (Q2 2024: 601,950). The steady increase in companies experiencing ‘significant’ financial distress was driven by noticeable increases in distress in the Utilities (+19.3%),…
Read moreThe British Business Bank’s latest Nations and Regions Tracker reveals a significant increase in external finance usage among UK small businesses, with 46% now leveraging it, a rise of 10% from the previous year. Notably, Wales leads with 53% of smaller businesses using external finance, marking a 16 percentage-point increase. Despite this growth, 61% of…
Read moreLeonard Curtis has announced it has continued the expansion of its funding pillar with the appointment of Mike Dinnell to the business advisory and commercial finance team. With over 30 years of banking and debt-advisory experience, Dinnell has supported numerous businesses looking for growth funding. Dinnell’s experience covers a wide range of sectors with a…
Read moreA third of commercial finance brokers struggle to find lenders prepared to fund business acquisition deals according to latest survey data from Asset Advantage. Alongside difficulties with lender appetite, two-in-ten brokers said they find it hard to secure the right loan value for potential acquisitions. Respondents also shared challenges with securing all the necessary information,…
Read moreLatest Office for National Statistics (ONS). data has shown that Inflation unexpectedly to 1.7 per cent in the year to September, the lowest rate in three-and-a-half years, Lower airfares and petrol prices were the main drivers behind the surprise slowdown. City Analysts had expected the rate to drop to 1.9 per cent, while the Bank…
Read moreNearly half (49%) of small businesses say they have not benefited from falling inflation this year, according to a new poll commissioned by iwoca. The research, which comes ahead of the ONS’s latest inflation statistics, also reveals that the cost of doing business is too high for half (50%) of the UK’s 5.6 million small and…
Read moreThe percentage of UK small business predicting growth for the final three-months of 2024 remains at the two-year high of last quarter (35%) – with significant upturns in growth forecasts across the North, the Midlands and among younger businesses – according to new research from Novuna Business Finance. Despite market uncertainty about what lies ahead…
Read moreElectricity bills for small industrial consumers, including large retail and leisure units as well as small manufacturers, are set to rise to around £200,000 more than pre-crisis levels in 2026 according to data from Cornwall Insight’s Business Energy Cost Forecast. The report revealed that small industrial businesses are predicted to be paying £550,000 annually (£238…
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