Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Small business confidence lost ground in the final three months of 2023, reversing gains made earlier in the year, according to the Federation of Small Business (FSB)’s latest quarterly Small Business Index (SBI) with two in five small firms seeing revenues fall over Quarter 4 (Q4). The headline confidence reading was -15.0 points in Q4,…
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Optimism among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is at its highest level in almost two years, driven by a rise in output in December, according to a survey compiled by NatWest. However, the survey reveals a divide in the trading performance of services, manufacturing, and construction businesses. Services-based companies outperformed their larger peers, while manufacturers…
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Controlaccount has been accredited as a living wage employer. The company’s living wage commitment will see everyone working at Controlaccount receive a minimum hourly wage of £12, higher than the government minimum for over 23s, which currently stands at £10.42 per hour. Controlaccount is based in the Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, a region where 13.3% of all…
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Latest data from the Office of National Statistics, that showed the annual rate of CPI inflation increased from 3.9% in November to 4.0% in December 2023. Commenting on the inflation figures ONS Chief Economist Grant Fitzner said “The rate of inflation ticked up a little in December, with rises in tobacco prices due to recently…
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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 November 2023 by 12% compared with the same month in 2022. In the eleven months to November 2023, new business was 13% higher than in the same period in 2022. The…
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Small businesses are increasingly confident over an economic recovery and the positive impact this will have on their finances. A poll by small business lender Iwoca shows that almost half (47%) of small businesses expect their revenues to expand this year, marking a steep increase on the 26% who said the same at the start…
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Cambridge & Counties Bank has become the latest financial services firm to sign up for interim registration to the Lending Standards Board’s (LSB) Standards of Lending Practice for business customers (business Standards) and the Standards for business customers – asset finance. The registration marks the first time a financial institution has signed up to both…
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Latest figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have shown that GDP rose by 0.3% in November after falling by 0.3% in October as the UK returned to growth. ONS Chief Economist Grant Fitzner said “The economy contracted a little over the three months to November, with widespread falls across manufacturing industries, which…
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Eight in ten small business owners (81%) are planning to develop their companies in 2024 according to research from Novuna Business Finance. The research shows that over a third (33%) are focusing on new initiatives to increase income, whilst a fifth (20%) are looking to reduce their fixed costs. With around nine in ten small…
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Pennon Group the owner of South West Water, Bristol Water and Bournemouth Water, has announced the purchase of Sumisho Osaka Gas Water UK the holding company of Sutton and East Surrey Water (SES Water) for £380 million. The deal will see Pennon add SES Water’s customer base of more than 750,000 and expand its scale…
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One in four small business owners (24%) has felt that their mental health has deteriorated under the strain of managing their business finances with Purbeck Personal Guarantee Insurance. Purbeck says whilst one in four is far from positive, it is a significant improvement from 49% in the same survey last year and underlines the tenacity…
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A fall in customer numbers and spending is a top challenge for almost two fifths of mid-sized businesses (39%) over the next six months, as high costs remain a pressing challenge for households and companies alike, according to new data from accountancy and business advisory firm, BDO. According to BDO’s latest bi-monthly survey of more…
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The fourth quarter of 2023 saw financial services business volumes contract for the first time since June 2020, according to the latest CBI Financial Services Survey. Volumes are expected to be broadly flat over the next three months. The quarterly survey, conducted between 21 November and 15 December, also showed that optimism and profitability were…
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