To start this Business Finance Bulletin, we review a new report from the SME Finance Monitor team which looks at the economic impact of COVID in terms of current and future performance.

The Insolvency Service has released the latest corporate insolvency figures for July. Whilst the number of firms entering some form of insolvency has increased compared to June, when benchmarked against July 2019, the numbers are down. We look at why that is.

To wrap up, a positive message! A study undertaken by Allica Bank and the Centre of Economics and Business Research has revealed the six rules of business success. Which ones will you follow?

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

You can also ready the transcript of this Business Finance Bulletin edition.

Transcript of The Business Finance Bulletin Week of 17th August 2020

The COVID impact on businesses; corporate insolvencies starting to rise; and the six rules of business success. All of this and the latest Business Finance Bulletin.

Let’s start this Bulletin by taking a look at a topic that I can’t fail, but to cover; and that’s the economic impact of the Coronavirus.

COVID Economic Impact

A new report has come out by the SME Finance Monitor team, taking a look at this impact. The SME finance monitor team have been producing reports and surveys since 2011, typically on the mindset of small business owners, their financial performance, and looking at attitudes to raising finance, but the latest report for quarter two 2020 focuses on this economic impact for all the 4,000 small businesses that they spoke to.

Their quarter two 020 survey found that 87% of businesses say they have been negatively impacted by coronavirus; essentially the vast majority of businesses in the UK, which obviously doesn’t come as a surprise.

Where is this impact showing?

Well, 46% of them have said that they’ve seen a greater than 50% reduction in sales, and many of them don’t see an immediate recovery, if any sales at all, over the coming months. But the biggest impact is possible in an area that’s of most concern which is forward planning.
Looking at the numbers, 52% in 2019 said that they were planning for growth. That figure in 2020 has now changed to 24% planning for growth. So, we can see there’s a big reduction in business owners who are thinking positively.

In fact, 51% of those businesses surveyed said that the worst is yet to come; it hasn’t even started. Not really a good outlook in terms of mindset for many small businesses. So it’s a case of just keeping an eye on what the market is doing.

One area that small businesses are concerned about is repayment of debt. 29% of them have said they are concerned about their ability to pay the new debt that they have taken on. Obviously they’re referring there to CBILS and Bounce Back loans, and it’s coming back to a message that I’ve been giving out for a number of times over these Bulletins which is that in March to April and June next year, we’ll see the first few payments on these Bounce Back and CBILs will come into play. So you’ve really got to plan ahead for repaying those facilities. So, a pretty bleak outlook, but I’m sure as the months go by that positivity will start to return

Corporate Insolvency Statistics

Regretfully. I need to continue the negative theme in this section, by taking a look at figures from the Insolvency Service as regards to the number of firms that entered into some sort of insolvency arrangement in July, 2020. And the figures for July do show an increase.

The number of businesses that entered into some sort of insolvency arrangement increased by 29% compared to the numbers in June. So, we can see some stresses now starting to come out. But interestingly, you compare that figure to the number of businesses that went into insolvency in July 2019, and the figures drop by 34%.

Why this drop? Well, there’s three things at play here. Number one, during the lockdown period, the courts obviously were not transacting much, so there’s a big backlog of firms that are trying to go into insolvency. It will take some time to work its way through the system.

Secondly, up until the 30th of September 2020, nobody can issue a Statutory Demand or Winding Up petitions against firms where they’re owed money. The temporary ban means that once that 30th of September deadline goes, creditors can issue a Statutory Demand, and Winding Up petitions, then we’ll see numbers really coming through.

The third thing of course, is that many businesses have been thrown a temporary lifeline in terms of CBILs and Bounce Back loans. Perhaps they would have fallen over before now, but the temporary relief probably doesn’t really solve the underlying problem.

If you are a firm in financial problems, don’t forget that your first action is to seek professional advice. Speak with your accountant or ideally an Insolvency Practitioner. Those are the ones who will be able to give you good advice on what steps you can take to protect yourself and your business.

Six Rules of Business Success

I’d like to finish this Bulletin on a positive note by sharing a study carried out by Allica Bank and the Center for Economics and Business Research. This study has uncovered the six rules to business success.

So what are those rules?

Rule number one is to hold regular training.

Staff are our biggest asset and therefore we should be investing in training to make sure, for example, that they provide top quality customer service. Don’t forget, training is just that it’s an investment; it’s not a cost. So hold regular training

Rule number two is focus on innovation.

We’re living in a fast-changing world with new ways of delivering our products and our services, so make sure that you’re at the cutting edge of innovative new ideas. Just make sure that your competition don’t get there before you by focusing on innovation.

Rule number three is to have a vision.

Sit down and plan ahead. What do you want your business to look like in one year, three and five years? Having a vision, prompts you to take the actions on a day to day basis. So have a vision for your business.

Rule number four is to expand your reach.

What we’re talking about here is just to have a look at whether there new markets you can tap into. Are there new products and services that you can offer? Just take a look at how you can get your message out differently. Perhaps use different social media channels. There are ways that you can change the way you operate in order to expand your reach.

Rule number five is re-invest in your business.

What we’re talking about here is don’t sit on your cash. You really now got to start investing for the future, so look at how you can get the best return on the resources that you’ve got by continually reinvesting in your business.

Rule number six is to explore your network.

There are a plethora of opportunities out there. If you only spoke more to your clients, to your colleagues and even your business colleagues as well; just tap into the vast network that is out there in order to help you improve your business.
There are six tips on rules for business success. Sit down, go through them and seeing how you can implement them in your business.

Wrap Up

That’s it for another Business Finance Bulletin. I hope you enjoyed it and if you did, please give it a like and a share. I look forward to being with you again next time and in the meantime, have great, successful, safe and profitable week.

Opening this Business Finance Bulletin, fears of another Credit Crunch are mounting with the Bank of England calling on banks to play their part in meeting funding needs as business start gearing back up.

The latest figures from the Finance and Leasing Association reveal how demand for Asset Finance facilities has dramatically fallen over the last quarter. We look at the two factors which are driving this decline.

To close, a review of which areas of the UK have taken the most CBILS and Bounce Back Loans, and the latest figures on how many loans have been accessed by businesses in need of finance.

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

You can also read the Transcript of this Bulletin below.

Business Finance Bulletin for Week of 10^th August 2020

The Bank of England calls on banks to help avoid another credit crunch; economic woes are affecting demand for Asset Finance ; and the areas and sectors in the UK that are using CBILS and Bounce Bank loans; all of this in the latest Business Finance Bulletin.

Calls to Avoid Another Credit Crunch

In a previous bulletin I mentioned that I had concerns that we may be seeing another credit crunch by the tail end of this year, and certainly in 2021. Well, it seems that the Bank of England also have similar concerns.

One of the many committees the Bank of England has is the Financial Policy Committee. That committee has responsibility to monitor and oversee risks that the UK economy could face. The latest committee report has suggested they are concerned that banks may not be there to meet the cash requirements of UK businesses.

The committee estimates that there’s probably going to be about £200 billion demand for finance as businesses come out of lockdown and start growing again. One concern is that the banks may not be there to meet that demand. Now, the committee recognises that the banks have done extremely well in supporting businesses before and during lockdown, with an estimated £70 billion of net borrowing distributed; net borrowing, means new money lent out, less money’s paid back.

Of course there are alternative sources of finance. And one thing that popped up last week, IWOCA, an alternative cashflow lender has tapped into a £100 million of funding. It has gone to all of the UK banks and said, “If you’re not happy to support your clients, we further them over to us.” We can see that the alternative finance sector is already stepping into the gap that perhaps may be left by the banks. Interesting developments, so watch this space in order to make sure that you are ahead of the game when it comes to raising finance,

That’s a huge slug of money, primarily sourced via CBILs and Bounce Back Loans. However, with this £200 billion gap, the Bank of England wants to make sure that the banks are there to meet that demand. They are concerned that with insolvencies going to be on the increase, the banks are going to be faced with even bigger losses and therefore will contract and step back from the market in order to conserve their capital. Obviously the Bank of England doesn’t want that, so it’s making an early call to banks to say, “Hey banks, we’re watching you. We want you to be out there supporting UK businesses in 2021”.

Fall in Demand for Asset Finance

Let’s move on now to demand for finance and interesting figures out from the Finance and Leasing Association. Its members are responsible for issuing facilities such as HP and leasing to finance the purchase of capital and machinery.

The figures are for June 2020 and in the month of June, 2020, compared to the month of June, 2019, the total volumes of business written by that sector was down by 41%. That just shows how big the change in the market has been. If we look at the first six months of 2020 versus the first six months of 2019 there, the drop in the volume of business was down by 32%. If we look at the last quarter, the second quarter of 2020 versus the second quarter of 2019, the drop has been a massive 49% in terms of volumes of business written, yes, nearly 50% drop.

What’s driving this?

There are two things. First of all, it’s lack of investment appetite amongst businesses. Many of them are very cautious at the moment, sitting back and watching the market and really don’t want to commit to any capital expenditure at the moment. However, on the other side, we’ve also got many businesses which do want to invest, and instead of obtaining finance have said that they are going to use funds, released via Bounce Bank loans, and CBILs loans. Yes, they’re going to use cash instead of using finance facilities. So, two things at play here.

CBILS and Bounce Back Loan Updates

Closing this week’s Bulletin, our usual look at what’s going on in the CBILs and Bounce Back Loan market. Now, before I take my usual look at the number of facilities drawn, I want to review a report issued by the British Business Bank, which focuses on areas and also sectors that have accessed these government loan support schemes.

First of all, CBILs loans outside of London and the Southeast, where many of businesses are based, it’s businesses based in the East of England that have taken out the most CBILs loans. In terms of Bounce Back Loans, again, excluding London and the Southeast, it’s businesses based in the Northwest, who’ve taken out the largest number of Bounce Back loans. If we look across the UK in terms of where businesses are registered and who’s accessed loans, it’s quite evenly spread and the numbers kind of match each other. It’s good to see a good even spread of businesses accessing support.

In terms of what’s going on in the scheme, figures to the 2nd of August have been released and in total, the amount accessed via the scheme now stands at £50.7 billion. How does this break down? In terms of Bounce Back loans, the number of loans distributed stand at 1,135,575 with £34.3 billion issued, at an approval rate of 82%.

In terms of CBILs loans, the number of loans distributed stands at 58,595 with £13.1 billion issued with an approval rate of 49%, a slight dip on the kind of average of 50%. So again, many businesses still unable to access CBILs. As I’ve mentioned over time, with the CBILs loans coming out with very low acceptance rates, don’t forget, there are many alternative providers out there who can step into that funding gap and help you out. We can see lots of businesses still accessing these schemes, but don’t forget the CBILs ends at the end of September. So, if you’re thinking of applying, you need to get in quick,

Wrap Up

That’s it for another Bulletin and I hope you enjoyed watching. If you did, please, don’t forget to subscribe to this channel and also give it a like and, a share. That’s it, and I look forward to being with you again, next time. And in the meantime, have a great successful, profitable and safe week.

Opening this week’s Bulletin, we look at the amount banks are setting aside for expected loan losses. We are in the High Street banks’ half-year reporting season and they are setting aside significant provisions for expected loan defaults. How could this impact you when looking for finance?

Although experiencing a fall in sales, the impact on small businesses is being offset by cost savings. We review a survey from Hitachi Capital Invoice Finance which reveal the top cost lines where savings are being made.

To close, we look at surveys from Lloyds Bank and the Federation of Small Businesses, one which reports businesses are starting to feel more confident, and the other revealing that business owners are still cautious about the next three months.

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

You can also read the Business Finance Bulletin transcript here…

Business Finance Bulletin 3^rd August 2020

UK banks have set aside significant sums in anticipation of loan losses; how does this impact you? How businesses have been saving costs over the last few months; and mixed messages on business confidence… all of this in the latest Business Finance Bulletin

Bank Loan Loss Provisions

Let’s start this Bulletin with a topic I’ve never covered before. In the previous 308 episodes of the Business Finance Bulletin, I’ve never looked at bank profit performance.

Why am I interested this time?

Well, over the last seven to ten days, the UK banks have started releasing their half year profit figures, and there’s one figure that really stands out, that could impact on you. That is the amount of money that banks are anticipated to lose through loans going bad or not being paid.

The banks have been setting aside a new loan provision figure. This reflects their view on the economy and the amount they’re setting aside in anticipation of loans going bad is quite significant.

For example, Barclays Bank have set aside an additional £1.6 billion for anticipated loan losses.

Lloyds, they set aside an additional 2.4 billion.

NatWest, an additional 2.2 billion and Santander, £376 million.

In total, it’s just over 6 billion pounds of new anticipated loan provisions that the banks have set aside.

Now this excludes the Bounce Back Loans because we know the government guarantees a hundred percent of the Bounce Back loans. There’s been £34 billion of Bounce Back loans distributed, and 40% of that it’s about £14 billion of Bounce Back loans are likely to go bad.

How does this impact you?

I mentioned in a previous Bulletin, I think there’s a credit crunch coming in 2021. It’s clear that if the banks are anticipating significant loan losses, it’s confirmed their appetite to support small businesses with new debt is going to be very much lower. So what does this mean for you?

If you are looking to get extra cash in order to supplement working capital, you really have to be approaching your lenders early because you may not get the answer you want. You may have to look at alternative sources of finance, and this could take time if the market is contracting in terms of sources of finance. So, plan early.

Don’t forget, if you did jump quickly and get a Bounce Back loan of up to £50,000, don’t forget with the CBILs facility, which is a higher amount, you can actually include an amount to refinance an existing Bounce Back loan. So, if you apply for £150,000, £50,000 of that can go to refinance your Bounce Back loan. Use that window of opportunity because the CBILs facility closes in September. So, we can see there’s a lot of headwinds around. If you are looking to raise finance, plan early.

Business Cost Reductions

For the last few months, many businesses have seen sales and turnover going down, but many businesses have been able to offset the pain via reduction in costs and overheads.

So where have businesses been saving money?

Well, an interesting survey has come out from Hitachi Capital Invoice Finance. They found in this latest survey, 64% of businesses say they still have employees working from home, and naturally this does involve some cost saving for the business.

So where are these savings?

From the businesses surveyed,

53% of them said they are saving on employee food and drink;

48% saving on employee travel.;

45% on cleaning services

36% saving on catering for client meetings

and 36% say they are saving on rent and utilities.

So what’s the total amount on average that they are saving? Well, 70% of the firms said that on average, they are saving £840 per month; about £10,000 a year.

Not a small sum. It doesn’t offset the total drop in income, but hey, at least it does take away some of that pain.

The message is to continually review and challenge your costs Take a look at your bank statement, review all of the entries going out and ask, does that particular debit add value to my business or is it a cost that I can safely slash for now?

After all, it’s the businesses that have got a good control on overheads are the ones who will come out in a much stronger position.

Business Confidence Levels

Let’s close this Bulletin by taking a look at business confidence and the mixed messages that are coming out from various surveys.

First of all, Lloyds Bank’s monthly Business Barometer review. That showed some good news with confidence levels showing a month-on-month increase since the low in March. Also economic sentiment, that’s also increasing as well.

It’s good to see that some businesses are starting to feel a little bit more confident, but of course, that confidence level is well off the long-term average reported in that series from Lloyds Bank.

On the flip side, though, not such good news from the FSB quarterly Small Business Index. There, 23% of businesses surveyed said that the next three months is definitely going to be worse for them than the previous three months. So, there are some businesses that are looking ahead which feel well away from coming out of the danger zone. It just shows that many businesses are probably balancing on a bit of a knife edge.

If you’re in that position, don’t forget, it’s all about getting the right advice now, so please do reach out to your accountant and your other professional advisors. If you’re in the position where you’re not feeling that safe, of course, keep watching the Business Finance Bulletin and I’ll have lots of tips for you on how to make sure that you get yourself back onto an even financial keel.

Wrap Up

That’s it for another Bulletin. As ever, I hope you enjoyed watching it, and if you did, please, don’t forget to give it a, like and a share.

That’s it. I hope you have a safe, successful, and healthy week and I look forward to being with you again next time.

On 22nd July HMRC’s status as a Preferential Creditor in insolvency situations was restored after nearly 20 years. Could this have an impact on the cost of obtaining business finance and the appetite of lenders to support businesses?

As growth in the economy begins to kick back in, many businesses are a long way off in settling into a new routine. To take the pressure off, calls are being made for the government to extend the temporary moratorium on Wrongful Trading which is due to be lifted at the end of September.

To close this Bulletin, we review the latest CBILS and Bounce Back Loan figures which continue to provide a financial lifeline to businesses.

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

You can also read the transcript of this Bulletin below…

Changes to HMRCs ‘s creditor position in an insolvency; calls to extend the deadlines on the government support schemes; and I look at the latest CBIL’s and Bounce Back loan figures. All of this in the latest Business Finance Bulletin.

Let’s start this Bulletin by having a look at the little known change came into effect on the 22nd of July, which could have an impact on the cost of unsecured business borrowing. 
So what was that change? 
Well, on the 22nd of July, the Finance Bill passed through Royal Assent. In that Finance Bill was a change to HMRC ‘s creditor position as regards where it ranks when payments are due to it under an insolvency situation.
We need to wind this back to before 2002.

Before 2002, HMRC had a preferential creditor status. If a company went into insolvency, HMRC in respect of PAYE, VAT and National Insurance contributions, would have a first call on funds ahead of other unsecured creditors. However, via the Enterprise Act of 2002, their position was downgraded and they sat alongside other unsecured creditors. So money was shared out equally. 
The government, obviously is looking to increase his tax take. In 2018, it decided to reverse this position, making HMRC again, a preferential creditor. What kind of impact is this having in terms of business borrowing? 
Now we’ve got the position where, as before, HMRC can now take first call in respect of VAT PAYE and National Insurance.

That means essentially there’s less money now to share out amongst the unsecured creditors. So that’s going to put them in a worse position. From a business banking point of view, that’s obviously is going to be a concern. 
If you’ve got a Debenture which captures stock and other assets, now there’s less money to go around to secure and satisfy that Debenture. The impact’s going to be that it’s going to make borrowing potentially more expensive or take away and dampen further the amount of appetite that banks have to lend to businesses. 
So it’ s a little known change, but it potentially could end up costing you a bit more money when it comes to borrowing on an unsecured basis,

As businesses start to open their doors again and get back to a semblance of normal trading, t here are calls now being made for the government to extend certain elements of the support that they provided businesses over the last couple of months. Now, one area that is being called for an extension is a change that was made via the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act early this year. 
Under this Act, the concept of Wrongful Trading has been temporarily put aside. What I mean by this and I’ve covered this in previous Bulletins, Wrongful Trading is where as a Director, if you knowingly enter into a credit agreement, when, your business is insolvent, you could actually be accused of Wrongful Trading.
The government thought that this isn’t right during these turbulent times, and so they put a temporary moratorium on that to allow directors to take really good decisions in these uncertain times, mindful of the fact that they would not then be prosecuted for Wrongful Trading.

That moratorium finishes on the 30th of September. RSM, a auditing and accounting and consultancy firm have written to the Chancellor last week, pleading to extend that moratorium to the end of December this year, to give another period for businesses to settle down while they reassess their model and look at how they can do business and look ahead as to what their borrowing requirements are going to be; they think it’s unfair that that 30th of September deadline is met. 
There are also calls at the same time for the government to further extend the CBILs scheme as well. We’ll look later on in this Bulletin, but there’s still lots of applications coming through. 
As we start to get back into a new normal, calls are now being made for the government to extend deadlines and provide further support to businesses.
Continue watching this Bulletin and I’ll bring you updates as and when they come out.

To close this Bulletin , let’s take a look at what’s going on with the Bounce Back Loan scheme and the CBILs scheme. Figures have been released by HM Treasury and the British Business Bank as at 19th of July and their figures reveal that a total of £48 billion has now been lent out by accredited lenders.
That’s £48 billion of new money that’s been pumped into the economy in order to support struggling businesses.
Let’s have a look at the numbers underlying those figures. First of all, let’s look at the Bounce Back Loans. In terms of loans distributed of Bounce Back’s, there are now 1,084,153 loans; £32.79 billion has been lent out and it’s got an approval rate of 82%. So a very strong success rate.

Turning now to CBILs , which starts kicking in at £50,001 and above, not as good a numbers as Bounce Back Loans, but still really strong. Total number of CBILs loans now stand at 55,674; £12.2 billion has been lent out and it’s got an approval rate of 50%.

So not as good as a Bounce back Loan. There’s more due diligence and assessment goes into a CBILs facility, hence that success rate not being as good as under the Bounce Back Loan scheme. I’ve mentioned in previous Bulletins, you’ve got to be really aware if you’ve taken out any of these facilities in 2021, obviously your repayments will kick in.

If you’re looking to borrow money going forward under ordinary loan schemes, the banks are going to be critically looking at this new liability that will kick in in quarter one and quarter two next year; they’re going to factor those new repayments into your cashflow. Also you’ve got to be mindful as well, i f you’ve taken out a Bounce Back Loan or CBILs, then you’re kind of sending a signal that your business is not as strong and that you needed it.

Now I know many businesses that just applied for the loan because it’s such a good interest rate and why wouldn’t you. And certainly it’s there to use to help grow your business. But if you don’t need it, I would critically take a look say month 10 before your repayments kick in as to whether you actually still need it. I f you want to have a clean balance sheet are not impact on your ability to borrow money in the future. Think about paying it back. There are of course no penalties to paying it back early. So the schemes continue to be popular if you haven’t applied and you do need it, g et in there quick, all of these schemes have a finite deadline.

That’s it for another Bulletin and as ever, I hope you enjoyed watching. I f you did, please, don’t forget to give it a like and a share and subscribe to this channel. So that’s it. I look forward to being with you next time. In the meantime, have a safe, profitable, healthy week.

Opening the latest Business Finance Bulletin, we look at proposals presented by financial firms and professionals on how to ease the debt and cashflow burden facing business in 2021 when CBILS and Bounce Back Loan repayments start.

As businesses open and consumers slowing start spending, we review the latest quarterly survey from Hitachi Capital Business Finance which reveals that business confidence is slowly beginning to return, especially among small businesses.

To close, the announcement that the European Union has relaxed the Undertaking in Difficulty test means that businesses refused a CBILS loan due to an insolvent Balance Sheet can now re-apply. This is good news for businesses previously denied access to the CBILS programme.

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

To start this week’s Bulletin, we take a look at whether we are going to see another Credit Crunch in 2021? The signs are starting to emerge that we may and if so, what can you do now to avoid getting caught out?

Getting the right support and advice can help you navigate these turbulent times. If you value advice as you plan your recovery, then there’s good news in the form of the launch of a free advice hub hosted by Enterprise Nation. We review the types of support you can access.

To close, a review by the Chartered Institute of Credit Management has revealed the impact on those businesses offering payment holidays. How can you manage this?

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

Opening our latest Bulletin, we look at a milestone hit by the government guarantee loan support schemes – the Bounce Back Loans and CBILS. The number of loans disbursed have hit record highs and proved to be a lifeline for many businesses and another batch of lenders added to the panel further improve access to the various schemes.

Studies are now exposing the extent of the impact of recent events on business performance and profitability but there is a glimmer of light. We look at surveys from Lloyds Bank, Xero and the Federation of Small Businesses which reveal the pressures businesses are under.

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

We open the latest Business Finance Bulletin with a look at changes to insolvency law with the passing of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act. How will this help struggling businesses?

As businesses get back into the swing of trading, what are the challenges facing them? A survey from MarketFinance reveals how businesses are faced with tackling long overdue invoices and the future impact on cashflow.

To close this Bulletin, with Bounce Back Loans proving to be a lifeline for cash-strapped businesses, it appears that some Directors are misusing the funds, leaving them open to close scrutiny in the event of business failure.

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

Starting this week’s Bulletin, with businesses either back trading or gearing up to open the doors, we look at surveys from Aldermore Bank and UK Finance which reveal how businesses see the next 12 months in terms of borrowing and growth.

The British Business Bank announces accreditation of more new lenders on the Bounce Back and CBILS loan schemes. Are we at the stage where there are enough on the panel of lenders?

To close, we review the latest figures on the two loan schemes and consider why the number of unsuccessful CBILS applications remains stubbornly high.

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

Opening the latest Business Finance Bulletin, we look at figures released by the Finance and Leasing Association which reveal how many requests the sector has had for payment forbearance. We also review the volume of Asset Finance business written in April, which not unexpectedly has seen a sharp drop.

The British Business Bank continues to accredit new lenders offering Bounce Bank Loans, CBILS and the larger CBILS facility. The weekly running total of the amounts lent under all three schemes continues to increase and proving to be a lifeline for businesses.

To wrap up this Bulletin, a survey from Nucleus Commercial Finance finds that some small business owners are injecting funds from personal savings to keep their business afloat.

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