In this last episode of the Business Finance Bulletin for 2015 Rob Warlow looks back over the key business finance news in 2015.

Rob reflects on 2015 being the year when improved business confidence took hold with more business owners than ever feeling positive about the future.

How did the High Street bank perform in 2015 when it came to supporting small businesses? Rob takes a look at the banks’ attitude towards businesses and how the year saw banks forging alliances with providers of alternative finance such as Funding Circle and Assetz Capital.

Staying with the alternative finance scene 2015 was the year which witnessed new highs and greater level of awareness amongst business owners of crowdfunding and other sources of finance.

2015 was also the year when new legislation was introduced to help businesses tackle late payment and for banks to pass on introductions to lending platforms where the bank can’t assist.

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In the latest episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow reviews the recent Entrepreneur’s Index survey released by Barclays Bank and the Regional Growth Fund. As well as looking at the UK business scene the report focuses on High Growth businesses.

Turning to growth finance raised via equity crowdfunding a new report issued by Altfi poses the question of how businesses have fared in raising equity by this method. The ‘Where Are They Now? Report reveals some interesting findings on the benefits of equity crowdfunding.

Staying with alternative finance Rob looks at study by GLI Finance and Cambridge University Centre of Alternative Finance which states that there a significant funding gap faced by SMEs which are unaware about sources of alternative finance.

If you’re suffering from cash flow problems Rob takes a looks at a product from Just Cashflow called BusinessPlus Mastercard which is designed to ease the cash crunch which SMEs typically face.

And in the Business Tip of the Week…. invest, don’t spend!

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In this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow reviews peer to peer lender Folk 2 Folk and how they won the recent accolade of Best Lending Platform for Small Businesses.

High growth, or scale ups are they are sometimes referred as, are gaining attention in terms of the support and finance they need to meet their potential. We look at the announcement from Barclays Bank of its recent creation of a High Growth and Entrepreneur unit designed to support high growth businesses.

Turning back to the crowdfunding world, news of two more local councils joining Funding Circle as lenders to provide financial support to small businesses in their area. These two councils join the growing number of councils providing finance on the Funding Circle platform.

In the Business Finance Tip of the Week Rob continues his occasional mini-series looking at how you can calculate and use key ratios from your Profit and Loss and Balance Sheet to spot areas of improvement. In this episode Rob looks at calculating your Creditor Payment Days, or how long on average it takes you to pay your creditors – a potential red flag to your bank!

If you prefer to listen to the podcast version click below or download it via our Soundcloud or itunes channel.

In the latest episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow looks at a new product launched by Market Invoice, the online invoice discounting provider. The new product called Contract Finance will help businesses release previously locked-up cash from contracts delivering regular income.

According to a survey from Bibby Financial Services business confidence amongst SMEs has taken a dent and bucked the recent trend of a rise in more confident businesses. Why is this?

Rob reveals the sources of finance business owners are turning to as featured in a survey carried out by Santander Corporate and Commercial Banking. Which source is proving surprisingly popular?

In the crowdfunding world, the latest lending figures from the P2P Finance Association show that its members are reaching new highs in their support of growing businesses. Rob looks at how SMEs are benefiting.

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week, Rob shares a calculation you can make from your Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Accounts which can help pinpoint a problem in your stock control.

If you prefer to listen to the podcast version you listen in below or download it via our Soundcloud or itunes channel.

In this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow looks at the findings of the Competition and Market Authority review into the UK banking sector and its recommendations for easier SME banking.

What’s the difference in attitude towards alternative finance between relatively young businesses compared to more mature ones? That’s a question posed by Business Banking Insight and their findings suggest that older businesses need to look at alternative sources of finance just as their younger upstarts are.

Rob reviews a survey from crowdfunder FundBird on businesses appetite to borrow and what they are financing if they are successful in obtaining funding.

Staying with crowdfunding Rob looks at the news from Funding Circle of its entry into the European market with the acquisition of the German crowdfunding platform ZenCap.

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week, a clip from a live seminar in which Rob shares insights into what should be included in a Business Plan written for the bank.

If you prefer to listen to the podcast version you can click below or download via our SoundCloud or itunes channel.

In the latest episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow looks at a report from Liberis, a finance provider, on the issues growing businesses face particularly in terms of late payment and how you can avoid it.

The Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme is a little known scheme devised to help both start ups and investors make use of attractive tax breaks. Rob shares findings from a review as to how popular the scheme is and looks at the SEIS eligibility criteria.

Turning to crowdfunding, Rob has news from the Centre for Economics and Business Research which predicts that the amount of money accessed through crowdfunding will grow to a significant sum by 2020.

If you’re a VAT registered business you are probably familiar with the challenges of meeting the quarterly demand! Recent figures from finance provider LDF show a large amount of overdue VAT is outstanding to HMRC and in the Business Finance Tip of the Week Rob chats with Liz Maher from Centurion VAT in which she shares tips on managing your VAT risk.

If you prefer to listen via a podcast version you can download via our Soundcloud or itunes channel or listen in below.

In the latest episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow features ethical business lender Fair Business Loans and how after 10 years focusing on the London market they are spreading their wings to assist SMEs across the UK.

Rob reviews the findings from a recent Institute of Directors report on the Enterprise Investment Scheme and the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme, which reveal that more needs to be done to raise awareness of how both businesses and private investors can make better use of the schemes .

Turning to crowdfunding Rob shares news of a collaboration between KPMG and crowdfunding platform Invest Den designed to provide support and guidance to those SMEs looking to raise funding.

If you are already using an invoice discounting line Rob looks at a new facility, Liquidity Plus, from Close Bros which potentially can release up to 100% of an invoice; a useful boost if working capital is tight.

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week a look at the difference between profit and cash!

If you wish to listen to the podcast version click below or you can download it via our SoundCloud or itunes channels.

In this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow looks at the findings from the latest quarterly SME Finance Monitor report. The report highlights why you should never assume anything when dealing with your bank!

Turning to the asset-based finance sector Rob has news on how this form of finance continues to outpace the banks in terms of support to small businesses.

In the crowdfunding world Rob looks at the announcement from equity crowdfunding platform Crowdcube on a new milestone reached in respect of funds raised.

What are your confidence levels like about where your business is going over the next few months? Find out what business owners said when asked this question by Bibbys Financial Services as part of their regular SME Confidence Tracker.

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week a clip from a live seminar in which Rob talks about why business owners hate writing business plans.

If you wish to listen to the podcast version (and our other business finance podcasts) tune in below or go to our SoundCloud and itunes channel.

In this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin Rob Warlow from Business Loan Services reviews the government’s latest moves to curb late payment by launching a consultation paper on the creation of the proposed conciliation service.

Late payment often affects the small time trades sector who can get caught by having to wait many weeks when customers don’t have sufficient cash with them to settle bills. Rob looks at new mobile payment service designed to combat this problem.

Turning to crowdfunding, Rob has news of initiatives brought out by ReBuildingSociety and Funding Circle to boost awareness and usage by both businesses and investors.

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week Rob shares a salutary lesson about being prepared when it comes to raising finance.

If you prefer to listen to the podcast version click below or click the download symbol to access on your phone. You can also access the Bulletin via our itunes channel.

In the latest Business Finance Bulletin episode Business Loan Services’ Rob Warlow looks at the latest Business in Britain survey from Lloyds Banks which reveals the strong level of business confidence and the one key issue which is holding businesses back.

On the alternative finance scene Rob talks about findings from small business finance company Liberis on how SMEs are sourcing finance and what success they are having.

Staying with alternative finance a look at the latest statistics from the Peer to Peer Finance Association which show further growth in the level of finance support by P2P platforms… but is there a slight blip in the amount lent to small businesses?

And in the Business Finance Tip of the Week Rob looks at the short term loan market and how it can help those businesses which have temporary cashflow gaps.

If you would prefer listening to this episode of the Business Finance Bulletin then check out our podcast version by click or downloading below via our Soundcloud channel or via our itunes channel.