Banking Group Announces New £100m Boost For SMEs

2/7/09

A £100million cash injection for UK SMEs has been announced in a major new lending offer by Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banks.
 
The Bank’s National Invoice Finance Team is increasing its funding support to the SME community with the new fund, to be made available through its nationwide network of 77 financial solutions centres.
 
Invoice finance - sometimes called cash-flow finance – is a sales-driven facility which can be accessed on line and enables business to obtain up to 85 per cent of the value of invoices they issue immediately with the remainder payable when payment is received. The service means that businesses are not hampered by late payments as they always have rapid access to funds which reflect their commercial performance.
 
Martin Rothera, head of the National Invoice Finance Team, said: “In the current economic climate, SMEs need extra support to give them a competitive edge. By making this new invoice finance fund available, we are helping successful businesses secure their future and get one step ahead of their competition.”
 
“Tougher economic conditions traditionally lead to pressure on cashflow for small to medium sized businesses, compounded by a tendency among their customer businesses to delay payments, usually because they face similar difficulties.
 
“Invoice finance helps businesses to run smoothly by releasing a proportion of invoiced values immediately. We are sure that many will want to benefit from the additional funds available and that it will play an important role in helping both our existing and new business customers navigate the current climate.”
 
The Bank’s National Invoice team has 80 staff, based in 77 financial solutions centres across the UK.  A further eight new jobs, including auditors and relationship managers who will work throughout the UK, are being created to help meet the anticipated high demand for the Bank’s cash injection to the SME community.
 
Martin Rothera adds: “As well as helping existing business customers of the Bank, we are keen to see new, well-managed companies benefit from this new fund, demonstrating our ongoing commitment to supporting the SME community, which are the backbone of the economy.”
 
Hayley Booth, commercial director at Brighouse-based motor control, distribution switchboard and PDU enclosures manufacturer, Rolla Limited, says: “We’re very pleased with the support from the bank and in particular our invoice finance facility. Having one relationship manager who understands our business, with the Invoice Finance Team adding further value, gives us the confidence we need in these difficult times.”
 
News of the new fund follows the release of Clydesdale and Yorkshire Bank’s interim results (April) which showed, in the six months to March 31, the banks had expanded their customer base by five per cent with business lending up by 14 per cent, representing £1.2bn of new money to support local business and deposits increasing by 15 per cent.