A seeming reluctance among some small businesses to borrow money has extended to the equity finance world. We open our latest Bulletin with a review carried out by Beauhurst of equity finance transactions undertaken in the first quarter of 2018. The figures reveal a downturn in activity compared to the previous quarter.

Creditsafe, the credit agency, has reported that according to its research, company bad debts and the number of registered CCJs jumped in the first three months of this year. It appears that the pressure of unpaid invoices is beginning to show.

Cyber crime continues to grab the headlines, particularly with the forthcoming GDPR deadline. To ensure businesses are aware of the risks of being targeted by fraudsters, Barclays Bank has launched an awareness campaign with recommendations for businesses on how to keep safe.

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.

To open our latest Bulletin, we share the great news that Funding Circle has invited BLS to join its Business Champion Programme. This is in recognition of the quality introductions we have made to them, adherence to their guidelines and our knowledge of the marketplace. So how will our inclusion to the Programme benefit our clients?

More developments in the mobile banking industry with the announcement from CountingUp that it has now launched its Business Bank Account. We look at how the service differs from other mobile banking apps on the market.

To close this edition, we review two surveys from Bibby Financial Services and the Institute of Directors which reveal that business confidence continues to recover from recent low points. However, businesses still see a number of challenges facing them when it comes to growth.

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.

Following the announcement in the Chancellor’s Spring Statement that the government is looking at ways of tackling late payment, it has announced the launch of a consultation paper. The government is looking for input on its plans to address late payment amongst businesses awarded government contracts. Do you have any thoughts?

Where it can’t assist, to continue signposting businesses to alternative lenders, Nat West has announced MarketInvoice as the ninth addition to its Capital Connections panel. Being an online invoice discounter, MarketInvoice adds a new service to Nat West’s expanding panel.

Figures from UK Finance, the finance industry’s trade body, reveal that 2017 was a record year for businesses accessing Asset-Based lending. Looking closer at the figures, smaller businesses though really took advantage of this growing source of alternative finance. But is that the case in the first quarter of 2018?

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.

Cyber-attacks and cyber security never seem far from the headlines these days. If you were hit, what would be the financial implication for your business and could you withstand the impact? That’s a question posed by Lloyds Bank in a recent survey. What can you do to protect yourself? One way includes checking your IT system with companies such as www.pisys.net

The charge of the mobile-only banks continues. We look at the announcement from Starling Bank of the launch of its business account service. What features does the account have for businesses keen to switch to mobile-only banking?

We finish this edition with news from Crowdcube, the equity raising crowdfunding platform, that over the next five years it’s aiming to double the number of deals originated outside of London and the South East.

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.

According to the Registry Trust, 2017 saw a significant jump in the number of County Court Judgments registered. Is this a sign of toughening economic conditions or businesses being more aggressive when it comes to tackling overdue payments?

Since its launch in January, Open Banking has been gathering support primarily amongst the smaller, so called Challenger Banks. The latest bank to embrace Open Banking is mobile-only Starling Bank. It has announced a tie-up with TrueLayer which will act as a link between Starling Bank customers and alternative finance providers.

One of the more challenging aspects of starting a business is arranging finance. Where do you go? That’s a question posed by Hitachi Capital Business Finance when it spoke to start ups and younger businesses. We take a look at where business owners are getting their money from.

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.

Following a recent spate of high-profile company administrations, we open this Bulletin discussing the Euler Hermes Global Insolvencies Index which has revealed how in 2018 the UK is set to witness the second largest global increase in insolvencies. When linked with the latest bank lending figures, it looks like 2018 is turning out to be a challenging year.

Alternative lenders are continuing to announce the allocation of funds specifically focused on supporting small businesses. We look at funding pots set aside by Iwoca and Metro Bank designed to assist regional and national small businesses.

Do you credit check customers you give credit terms to? To close this Bulletin, we have a reminder of why it’s important to check your customer’s creditworthiness before you extend credit terms.

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.

If you’re a growing businesses it can be a struggle to fund expansion and day-to-day working capital from internal resources.

If you are a business based in Wales and planning to raise finance in the near future then you may be interested a series of free workshops hosted by Business Wales.

Business Loan Services’ Rob Warlow will be leading these four hour workshops looking at:

• Why growth needs finance and the importance of the finance source being ‘fit for purpose’
• How to prepare a finance proposal for the bank, including,
  • Writing a business plan – the framework
  • The financial information required
  • 9 steps to preparing for a meeting with the bank
• What banks look for in a finance request; how they will assess your request and why they would say ‘no’
• The 9 sources of growth finance, including the range of alternative finance solutions

The workshop venues and dates are:

Wrexham – 5th February

Bangor – 6th February

Brecon – 13th February

Narbeth – 27th February

To find our more and to book on these free workshops, visit Business Wales website.

Raising business finance can be challenging. Business Loan Services is all about taking that challenge on board, leaving you to run your business.

Following on from the first part of “How Do Banks Assess Your Finance Request?”, we now move on to Part 2.

As outlined in Part 1, when applying for business finance, it’s useful to understand what lenders are looking for.

In this second session, we continue our review of the CAMPARI framework which banks follow when reviewing a finance request. We will be sharing the last three elements which focus on the amount you want to borrow, how you’re going to pay it back and how you can reduce the risk the bank is taking.

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.

If you missed the first part of this mini-series you can check out Part One here.