Close X

Leave a comment


Name:
Email:
Comment:
  I have read and understand the terms and conditions
 

Please click the post button only once - your comment will not be published immediately

Finance and banking

FEATURED CONTENT

Smith & Williamson

Enabling entrepreneurs

Smith & Williamson is a great business. To realise your full potential, discover the benefits of working with people who really care.
Click here for more

  • hot

Entrepreneurs mull over SFLG measures in Budget

by Catherine Woods - Wednesday, 12th March 2008 - (2) comments

Entrepreneurs mull over SFLG measures in Budget

Alistair Darling’s promise to boost the Small Firms Loan Guarantee scheme by £60m has received a lukewarm response from entrepreneurs although there’s concern the structure of the initiative is still an impediment for businesses seeking funds.

In his first Budget, the Chancellor said the scheme, a joint venture between the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and a group of lenders, would be made available to more small- and medium-sized companies.

Currently only UK businesses that are less than five years old with an annual turnover of up to £5.6m can apply for a small firms loan. Seventy five per cent of the loan amount is guaranteed by the government.

Rhodri Ferrier, co-founder of natural men’s grooming brand Bulldog, says while it’s a positive announcement, “our practical experience is the scheme is difficult to access”.

He adds: “The scheme sounds very attractive when you hear about the idea of unsecured loans. But for us, it was much easier to raise money ourselves than jump through the hoops the banks had put in place.

“It just seemed to be slightly restrictive and cumbersome to access. We found we could go out and raise equity that was, in the end, more flexible than a loan.”

However, Loewy’s Charlie Hoult believes the extra cash will make some difference. “I think microfinance is a pretty central challenge to the UK economy," he says.

“It’s the smaller amounts of funding that are the most challenging to find but can make the most impact.”

Related article

Budget 2008: The impact on entrepreneurs
Picture source

2 Comments

March 13, 2008 9:51am
stuart rock Says:

Here's the relevant extract about the SFLG in the new Enterprise Strategy paper: The Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG) is available to a wide range of businesses through high street lenders. Government is announcing changes to the operation of SFLG that will enable a wider range of businesses to continue to access debt finance for start-up and growth through high street lenders during any period of financial market disruption. The Government proposes to increase the banks SFLG lending allocations by 20 per cent for the next year. This will increase the amount of lending available by £60 million to a total of £360 million providing greater SFLG capacity at a time when financial market disruption may require the provision of debt finance to young and growing SMEs to be strengthened. In line with its renewed commitment to assist firms with growth ambitions, the Government will extend the eligibility of SFLG to businesses with growth ambitions that are more than five years old, including, but not limited to, those that have changed ownership. This will enhance the provision of debt finance for growing SMEs that lack loan collateral. In support of this change, the major SFLG lenders have committed to a renewed focus on promoting the appropriate use of SFLG to enable businesses who might otherwise not be able to access debt finance to fund their start-up and growth ambitions.

March 13, 2008 8:50am
Andrew Myall Says:

Having worked for the scheme for 17 years in reality what the DTI/ BERR web site states as to what banks actauly lend against is often quite different. Trouble is many applicants see the scheme as a last resort where the main areas for success of the scheme is for working capital, not for start up or early stage under six months.

BUSINESS NEWS >>

Dragon Peter Jones says, "Clone me!"

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - July 03, 2009 11:28am GMT

Real Business spent an eventful cab ride with Dragons' Den's tallest investor earlier this week. Here's what he had to say about the recession, James Caan, his search for Peter Jones lookalikes and, most importantly, the next series of Dragons' Den.

Businesses to run in a recession: part three

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - July 02, 2009 4:43pm GMT

Even in a recession, a good entrepreneur is always on the look-out for the next hot spot. Don’t wait around for the upturn. These are the businesses you want to be in now.

Access takes another step towards sales target

By Catherine Woods - July 02, 2009 4:33pm GMT

Access founder Alistair O’Reilly has embarked on a “brand elevation” exercise as he aims to grow turnover at his consulting and software company to £100m.

Tech entrepreneur: "The banks won't lend you an umbrella when it rains"

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - July 02, 2009 4:22pm GMT

At a roundtable hosted by Dell this morning, Real Business heard three technology entrepreneurs talk about the challenges of growing a business during the recession. People aren't the problem, they say. It's the mindset of banks and other financial institutions that needs to change if we're to come out of recession.

Government fund provides a "timely injection of capital"

By Catherine Woods - July 02, 2009 4:06pm GMT

Octopus Ventures, which invests in entrepreneurial businesses, has welcomed the governments’ proposed £1bn innovation fund, saying it will support entrepreneurialism.


BUSINESS COMMENT >>

The first Apprentice wedding!

By Catherine Woods - July 03, 2009 2:35pm GMT

Well, well, well, look who’s engaged.

Sir Alan Sugar: "You're hired!"

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - July 01, 2009 1:12pm GMT

Great piece by The Telegraph's Richard Tyler today about the confirmed appointment of Sir Alan Sugar to the post of enterprise tsar. "A tentative date of July 20th has been pencilled in for his hairiness to don the rabbit fur," he says.

Pre-stained underwear: the next big thing?

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - June 22, 2009 2:54pm GMT

That's right. "Pre-stained". Suspend your disbelief for a moment. Canadian entrepreneur Philip Watson founded Easy Tiger Corp to peddle underwear that has been - ahem - ready-soiled, shall we say. And he reckons these nasty knickers will be a surefire hit with "the dudes".

It can only be... the Friday Funnies

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - June 12, 2009 12:16pm GMT

As swine flu hits the headlines for the second time, the swine flu jokes are just pouring in! Laugh till you oink, readers.

Jokes. Jokes. Jokes.

By Rebecca Burn-Callander - June 05, 2009 12:14pm GMT

Further to popular demand, this week we're devoting a whole section of our jokes blog to our hapless prime minister, Gordon Brown.


Click here to sign up for the Real Business newsletter Click here to subscribe to the Real Business RSS feed

In accociation with
Real Business Front Cover