The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has published its latest Consumer Prices Index, which shows the rate of inflation rose to 2.3 per cent in the 12 months to October, up from 1.7 percent in September 2024. The increase showed that core Inflation (excluding food and energy) rose to 3.3%, up from 3.2% in September.…
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The number of overdue invoices on the books of Scottish firms increased by 42.8% in October 2024 when compared to the same period in 2023, according to new research by R3, the UK’s insolvency and restructuring trade body. The analysis of data provided by Creditsafe shows Scottish businesses had 600,588 invoices that had gone past…
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Working capital was the most in-demand funding choice for businesses in most sectors in the first half of 2024, according to analysis by business financial platform Funding Options by Tide. The research showed that working capital finance came out as the number one business enquiry for 11 out of the 16 business sectors analysed in…
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Time Finance has announced that it has appointed Sophie Aitken as Broker Manager in its Asset Finance team. Aitken joins the leading independent finance provider with over 10 years of experience in the financial services industry. Her previous roles include broker at Halo Corporate Finance, internal sales manager at InterBay Asset Finance and various roles…
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Office for National Statistics (ONS) data shows that the economy grew by just 0.1% between July and September, falling back from the 0.5% growth seen between April and June. The stalling of growth is being blamed on the worries in the economy over the potential tax rises that were being anticipated in Labour’s first budget…
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Credit Connect Media hosted its second Commercial Credit & Collections Conference last week at the Midland Hotel in Manchester which saw ten trade credit and insolvency professionals from various industry sectors meet to discuss the latest industry challenges. In the seventh edition of the Commercial Credit & Collections Conference series, hosted by Credit Connect Media,…
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Opus Energy has agreed to pay more than £7 million in refunds, redress and goodwill payments after identifying it overcharged almost 88,000 non-domestic customers between 2003-2023. The non-domestic supplier had two faults in its billing system, meaning customers were temporarily on the wrong tariff or their billing periods were incorrectly duplicated. The faults were initially…
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New research by EY ITEM Club has found that total bank lending grew by 2.6% this year (up from – 2.2% in 2023), 3.7% in 2025 and 4.3% in 2026. The research forecasts that business lending is set. to grow 3.1% this year (up from – 2.1% in 2023), 5.6% in 2025 and 6.2% in…
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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 September 2024 by 3% compared with the same month in 2023. In the first nine months of 2024, new business was 4% higher than in the same period in 2023. New…
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Time Finance has announced it has appointed Matt Heap as the new Head of Credit within its Asset Finance Division. Heap joins the leading independent finance provider with over 20 years of experience in the financial services industry. His most recent roles include serving as a Business Manager at Barclays and as a Senior Underwriter…
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Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee’s has voted to cut the base rate by 0.25% to 4.75%. MPC voted 8-1 to cut rates, with the dissenter preferring to leave cuts unchanged at 5%. Inflation is expected to increase to around 2.5% by the end of the year, from 1.7% in September. Federation of Small Businesses…
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An electrician from Middlesbrough has been subjected to seven years of stringent bankruptcy restrictions after claiming two Covid Bounce Back Loans and overstating his turnover to gain £16,250 more than he was entitled to. Shaun Dixon, a self-employed electrician from Leamington Grove in Middlesbrough, claimed Bounce Back Loans totalling £23,750 for his business in the…
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Data from the British Retail Consortium and KPMG shows that retailers experienced a disappointing October, with sales rising only 0.6% against a growth of 2.6% in October 2023. This was below the 3-month average growth of 1.3% and the 12-month average growth of 1.0%. Helen Dickinson OBE, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said…
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