The first website of its kind in the UK, findSMEfinance.co.uk, will help SMEs to unlock finance from the broad spectrum of lenders in the UK – from high street and challenger banks to peer to peer and alternative lenders – via an independent broker.
NACFB currently works with 106 lenders in the UK, but new research from the organisation suggests that just six per cent of small businesses are aware of what’s available beyond the high street banks – or that SMEs can access those lenders via an expert broker.
findSMEfinance.co.uk has been developed with the support of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, The Welsh Government and the Federation of Small Businesses. Its launch comes just days after Chancellor George Osborne launched a consultation on a referral process to help SMEs that have been refused finance to secure a loan elsewhere.
Marcus Grimshaw, Chairman of the NACFB, said:
“Despite various lending initiatives and awareness campaigns to make it easier for SMEs to borrow, small businesses still face significant challenges when it comes to securing finance.
“The issue, however, is not availability of funds. It’s about awareness and access. Many SME lenders are specialists that don’t have a high street presence, so it’s difficult and time consuming for small businesses to track them down.
“We launched findSMEfinance.co.uk as a game changer for SMEs seeking finance. The website will help to bridge the gap between the many thousands of credit-worthy SMEs who want to borrow, and the wide range of lenders out there who are ready and willing to lend. It is a platform for change and a vital resource to help the UK SME community grow”
The NACFB is a key consultee of the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills in the creation of an official referrals process for SME lending. The organisation is fully behind any initiative to make the lending process more straightforward for SMEs.
The site is sponsored by Investec Asset Finance.
Mike Francis, head of Investec Asset Finance, commented:
“We are in total agreement with the NACFB that there is a huge opportunity to help UK SMEs by highlighting the many different forms of finance available to businesses. If small company directors were more aware of asset finance, for example, it would give them the confidence to make more investment decisions, win new contracts and create extra jobs, and we are proud to support this initiative.”
