Banks under fire over lending to small firms – The Herald – 30-Apr-2011

Financial Institutions have been accused of trying to stifle new start-ups over funding applications.

This can have serious impact over the life-expectency of small businesses. Without proper funding, either they may fail to start or may fail to attract the right amount of attention from potential customers and hence, fail within a year or two.

There are several reasons behind this. The primary reasons are that financial institutions have been asked to increase the amount of capital they hold in order to lend. This has gone up. And as a result, they are either calling back the loans they had disbursed early. Or they are refusing to lend.

Having said that, financial institutions can only make money if they lend money. And hence, they are still lending. The criteria, however, have now become more stringent.

Whereas, in the past you could get a loan with a fair credit rating, now you need to not only have impeccable credit history, you also need to provide an element of security and deposit of as much as up to 30% of the loan value.

Get your application wrong the first time and you could be in for a long haul. You may have to make presentations after presentations. You may end up speaking to the wrong financial institution for your needs. Or you could end up speaking to the wrong department or person.

This can cause stress. And not only that, you may lose valuable opportunities and time. And rather than spending time doing what you are best at, you would end up preparing presentations and chasing financial institutions and with no result.

This is where working with specialists such as CER Business Finance can help.

We have worked with businesses from many sectors and of various sizes. And we have helped them secure the right funding.

Recently, Bill Christie, the Director of CER Business Finance, gave an interview to The Herald in which he has gone into details as to what financial institutions need to do to help Small Businesses. You can read the original article by clicking on the link below:

The-Herald-30-Apr-2011-Page21

We spend time to understand your situation and requirements. We don’t try to fit you into a box. Rather, we build a brand new presentation around your case.

And once we have done that, we approach the right person in the right department at the right lender. The result is much less stress and speedy results.

While we would love to guarantee our results, these depend on the information you provide.

We work in an honest way with you. And if at the outset we feel that you may not be eligible to get the funding you are looking for, we will mention that. In which case, there is no cost to you.

Government Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme

Government Enterprise Finance Guarantee Scheme

In the current climate businesses are finding it increasingly hard to access the finance they need, particularly Working Capital. This is not because the business has suddenly transformed from success to a failure, but because the current economic conditions have made a significant impact on the availability of Capital.

Under the (EFG) Scheme, the Government will guarantee lending to viable businesses to ensure that they can get the Working Capital and Investment they need.

The £1.3bn scheme will support Bank lending, of 3 months to 10 year maturity, to UK businesses with a turnover of up to £25m who are currently not easily able to access the finance they need.It will enable them to secure loans of between £1,000 and £1m through the Government Guarantee.

In short it offers more help to businesses than the previous Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme (SFLG).
Additionally EFG loans can be used to convert an Overdraft into a Loan.

Main Features and Criteria

  1. The Scheme was extended in March 2010 and will operate until 31 March 2014, when it will be reviewed.
  2. The Guarantee can be used to support new loans, refinancing existing loans, or to convert part or all of an existing overdraft into a loan to release capacity to meet Working Capital.
  3. Delivery of the EFG, including the decision on whether or not it is appropriate to use in connection with any specific lending transaction, is fully delegated to the participating Lenders.
  4. There is no automatic entitlement to receive a Guaranteed Loan and nor is there any pre-qualification process for it.
  5. Most businesses in most sectors will be eligible for the scheme. However, State Aid Rules exclude businesses in the agriculture, coal and steel sectors.
  6. A list of ineligible business activities has been published, many similar to the former SFLG Scheme. ( Contact us to find out if your business qualifies).
  7. Government will guarantee 75% of the loan.
  8. For all loans, a guarantee premium of 2% per year on the outstanding balance is payable quarterly to the Government.

What has happened to The Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme?

This scheme is suspended. The type of lending previously provided under the SFLG – to businesses that lack collateral and/or track record – will still be available under the EFG Scheme.

Small Firms Loan Guarantee Scheme

The small firms loan guarantee scheme was suspended in January 2009.

The type of funding previously provided under the SFLGS to businesses that lack collateral and/or a track record
will still be available under the ENTERPRISE FINANCE GUARANTEE SCHEME; details of which you will find on this site.

In March 2011 the EFG Scheme was extended for a further 3 years until March 2014.