More than eight in ten (81%) UK small businesses are prioritising new initiatives to boost their overall growth prospects for 2025. Increasing new business sales (43%) and reducing fixed costs (24%) are priority areas business owners want to focus on – but there’s also evidence the recent changes to employers’ National Insurance could significantly impact…
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The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) expects the UK economy to grow at a slower pace this year than it had previously forecast. However, it has upgraded its growth forecast for next year. The think-tank expects 0.9% growth this year, down from 1.1%, while 2025 is forecast to see growth of 1.7%, up…
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The Government has announced the launch of a new Fair Payment Code aimed at tackling late payments, with research showing that SMEs are on average owed £22,000 a year. It comes on top of an earlier announced consultation which will investigate the scale of the problem and best solutions. The code, overseen by the Small Business…
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Economic uncertainty is on the rise for the UK’s 5.6 million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) following the Autumn Budget, according to iwoca’s Q3 2024 SME Expert Index. The percentage of brokers reporting pessimism among their SME clients about the future has more than doubled, rising from 15% last quarter to 34%. Meanwhile, only one…
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The latest Lloyds Business Barometer found that confidence fell in November, with the index dipping three points to 41%. Considerably above the long-term average of 29%, the change followed a period of sustained positivity from businesses, as confidence reached the highest level reported since 2015 during May, July and August this year. The Business Barometer,…
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Business leaders’ confidence in the prospects for the UK economy fell to levels not seen since the pandemic during November, according to analysis by the Institute of Directors (IoD). The institute’s Economic Confidence index fell to -65 in November, down from -52 during October. This marks the fourth consecutive monthly fall and is the second…
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A company director has been given a suspended prison sentence after claiming a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan and then dissolving her business. Irena Tokarczyk from Watford, was the sole director of Good Food Shops Ltd when she applied for a £50,000 Bounce Back Loan in June 2020 – the maximum amount allowed under the rules…
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Recent data indicates that households are increasingly anxious about the state of the economy, particularly following Rachel Reeves’s Budget, which has raised concerns about a potential UK recession. The BRC-Opinium tracker shows a decline in consumer confidence, with only 19% of respondents feeling optimistic about the economy in the next three months, down from 21%.…
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The Lending Standards Board’s (LSB) has announced Iwoca, as the latest firm to achieve full registration to the Standards of Lending Practice for business customers. The LSB’s business Standards set the best practice benchmark for SME lending in the UK and can be applied across a range of financial services firms, from digital or challenger firms to…
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The UK’s retail sector continues to display resilience amid economic pressures with notable trends in late payments and insolvencies as the year concludes. The data from trade credit insurer Atradius also highlighted a rise in payment defaults in specific retail categories but remains optimistic about the sector’s ability to adapt and thrive in 2025. The…
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The ICAEW has announced the appointment of Phil Parry as Chief Information Officer (CIO). Parry will be responsible for the development and implementation of the Institute’s technology and AI solutions. As a member of the leadership team reporting into the Chief Executive, Alan Vallance, he will also assume responsibility for IT operations, digital and publishing…
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Newly published research has revealed that nearly one in three firms surveyed (31%) believe they’ll need to embark on a wave of redundancies in the coming year according to research Evelyn Partners. The research also showed that 30% of business owners polled say it’s likely they’ll default on debt over the next 12 months. The research…
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The British Business Bank, the UK’s economic development bank, has appointed Richard Bearman and Reinald de Monchy as Co-Chief Banking Officers, with a shared responsibility for all of the organisation’s banking activities for smaller businesses. Bearman will oversee a new Relationship Management function bringing together a number of existing skillsets across relationship management, account management…
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