I hope you found the latest editions of the Business Finance Bulletin ‘Brexit Special’ of interest, particularly the five steps you can take to future-proof your business.

In case you missed it you can view it again here:

‘Business Finance Bulletin: The Brexit Special’

One question I was asked last week was whether banks and other lenders are still lending and the answer is simple… yes.

The events of the last two weeks are not a re-run of 2008 and so whilst business investment plans may be under review (as I discussed in the Bulletin), finance is still very much available.

If you have an idea and the only piece of the jigsaw puzzle that’s missing is finance, your options include:

• Commercial mortgages for property purchase
• Short term loans to boost cashflow
• Asset finance to purchase vehicles, plant or equipment
• Crowdfunding for loans up to five years
• … and other finance facilities

Accessing finance is down to planning. That means searching the right finance option for you in good time, preparing a proposal document or Business Plan and ensuring that your financial information is up to date.

Do all this and you’re well placed to get the finance you need.

Of course, if you want to chat through the options available to you, the BLS team will be more than happy to speak to you, just drop us a line or give us a call.

In this Business Finance Bulletin episode, we start off with news from Funding Circle of a £100m facility from the European Investment Bank for onward lending to UK small businesses. The facility will sit alongside an investment to be made by Funding Circle’s SME Income Fund.

Another growing source of alternative finance is that of asset finance. We look at the latest figures from the Asset Based Finance Association which reveal that facilities extended to small businesses over the last 12 months have dramatically increased.

Cash is the lifeblood of all businesses and a survey from audit and taxation consultants RSM has found that businesses can release cash trapped in their business by better management of day-to-day working capital. I share one key working capital component where cash can often get stuck. In the Bulletin I also reference another video in which I share how you can calculate your Stock Turnover Ratio – a useful tool to spot when your stock is getting ‘stuck’.

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

We start off this Bulletin with a look at a record-breaking crowdfunding equity campaign via Crowdcube for children’s pre-paid debit card provider, Go Henry. The amount raised, which was twice the sum originally planned for, has sparked a debate about the maximum amounts which can be raised via crowdfunding platforms.

Turning to debt crowdfunding, we have news from South West based lender, Folk2Folk, which has passed a new milestone in terms of money lent.

New research from NESTA, the innovation foundation, reveals that unlike businesses, the charitable sector is not taking full advantages of the benefits which come from raising money via crowdfunding. We look at what the barriers and benefits are of using this form of fundraising.

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

Crowdfunding is a quick and flexible way to raise business finance and fund your growth plans.

Here’s a brief overview on how crowdfunding could help you.

If you want to know how we can help with your crowdfunding finance then drop us a line.

In this Business Finance Bulletin how has the crowdfunding and Peer to Peer lending sector performed in the first quarter of 2016? The latest figures from the Peer to Peer Finance Association reveal solid growth on the same time last year.

HSBC are the latest bank to pledge increased support to SMEs with the announcement of a pot of cash ready to lend. We also look at HSBC’s online lending application platform to help businesses get quicker answers. Taking a leaf out of the crowdfunder’s book?

What sources of finance are small businesses tapping into and what keeps them awake at night? That’s a question asked by Hitachi Capital in its recent small business survey. The answer to the cause of sleepless nights may not be a surprise.

In the Business Finance Tip of the Week, when a bank says it’s for ‘KYC purposes’, what does it mean?

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

In this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin a look back at 2015 in the alternative finance and crowdfunding market. The latest annual report from NESTA, Pushing Boundaries, provides an insight into how crowdfunding continued to grow in 2015.

If you are looking for an asset finance facility to fund your growth plans there’s news of a funding boost for the alternative lender LDF provided by the British Business Bank.

Xero, the cloud accounting software service, asked business owners what they thought the key ingredient for a successful business is. The entrepreneurs also shared their top three business pain-points. Do you suffer from any (or all) of these three barriers to growth?

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week when to comes to raising business finance, what influence do past business successes or failures have?

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

In the latest episode of the Business Finance Bulletin a review of the findings from the recent Small Business Finance Market Report. Released by the British Business Bank the report reveals that bank lending to SMEs is on the up and shares the sources of finance being used by small businesses.

Do you know the true of your business loan? That’s a question being posed by Growth Street, the alternative overdraft provider, as it calls for more transparent pricing via the introduction of an APR for SMEs.

Receiving payments via mobile phone may still be relatively new but we look at news from Paym, the mobile phone payment provider, on how usage of their service is rapidly on the increase.

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week how a calculation taken from your Balance Sheet can test the strength of your solvency.

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

In this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin finally an edition packed with good news.

We take a look at the latest figures from the Bank of England which show an annual growth in bank lending to small businesses (but not such good news for the larger businesses though).

In the crowdfunding world an update from the Peer to Peer Finance Association confirms that crowdfunding had another strong year in 2105 in terms of money lent, and an increase in the number of private investors and borrowers.

Staying with crowdfunding, there’s positive news from Assetz Capital which has announced a significant pot of new money to lend out to SMEs and details of the launch of a new equity crowdfunding platform, GrowthDeck.

And to round-off the crowdfunding theme of this edition, a clip from a seminar in which Rob Warlow from Business Loan Services outlines the history of crowdfunding.

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

This episode of the Business Finance Bulletin is a late payment and cashflow fest. Poor cashflow and management of late payment is one of the biggest barriers facing small business owners when it comes to planning for growth.

In this episode Rob Warlow looks at the latest research from Lloyds Bank Commercial Finance which uncovers the extent of the amount of cash trapped in overdue payments.

But what’s the solution to this problem?

The first way out Rob looks at is a new crowdfunding invoice discounter which can unlock cash so releasing much needed working capital to fund growth.

The second service is a new innovative support platform launched by a business owner who suffered from the effects of late payment. The service provides guidance and tools designed to ensure prompt payment by your suppliers. Could this work for you?

In the Business Finance Tip of the Week Rob gives some tips on writing a one-page Business Plan.

If you would prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download to listen to later via our Soundcloud, Stitcher or itunes channel.

In the latest episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow examines findings by R3 of the impact insolvency can have on small businesses which are left with outstanding payments and little hope of recovery.

2015 saw the crowdfunding sector reach new highs. Rob looks at highlights from Funding Circle and Crowdcube and also two industry pioneers who were recognised in the New Years Honours list.

Invoice fraud – have you been affected? If you’re luckily enough not to have fallen victim Rob shares news of a service now being offered by Experian to help combat this growing scam. Rob also chats with Damon Rands, a cyber security specialist, where he shares tips on how to protect your business.

The Business Finance Tip of the Week focuses on the importance of separating your personal and business finance dealings.

If you prefer to listen to the podcast version you can tune in below or download via our Soundcloud, itunes or Stitcher channels.