Crime agency to probe government’s bounce back loan scheme Crime agency warns bounce back loans being exploited by criminals Britain’s crime agency will investigate organised crime linked to the government’s bounce back loan scheme, launched to help businesses through the pandemic. The bounce back loan scheme, which launched in May, allows SMEs to borrow up to a quarter of their annual turnover, capped at £50,000. The scheme has proved the most popular form of [...]
Bounce Back Loan scheme could cost the taxpayer up to £26bn Bounce Back Loan scheme could cost the taxpayer up to £26bn The cost to the taxpayer of the government’s emergency loan scheme for struggling small businesses could be as much as £26bn, a new report has found. According to the National Audit Office (NAO), the cost of the government’s Bounce Back Loan scheme “has the potential to be very high” through a combination of firms being [...]
Over 800 directors have been disqualified for abusing Covid loan scheme COVID LOANS More than 800 directors have been disqualified for abusing Covid support schemes over the 2023-24 financial year following investigations by the Insolvency Service.
Taxpayer foots bad Covid loan bill of £7.4bn amid ‘uncomfortable level of fraud’ September 14, 2023 The government has already had to foot a £7.4bn bill to settle bad loans while banks have claimed a further £1.13bn under the schemes.
Organised crime gangs defrauded £367m from Covid support schemes August 22, 2022 Almost £400m was stolen from the UK government’s Covid support schemes by organised crime gangs, according to new figures released by Whitehall. Figures released by HM Revenue and Customs, after a Freedom of Information request by law firm Pinsent Masons, showed £367m was stolen from initiatives like the furlough scheme and Eat to Help Out. [...]
Covid loan fraud: More than 450 company directors disqualified in crackdown April 18, 2023 More than 450 company directors have been disqualified in a crackdown on covid fraud claims. The Insolvency Service announced that 459 of the 932 disqualifications overall for fraud were related to the coronavirus financial support scheme, introduced during the pandemic to help businesses in lockdown. This comes after the organisation published its monthly figures for [...]
SYK Recruitment Specialists among the 400+ recruitment agencies that went bust last year April 16, 2024 Insolvencies of UK recruitment agencies have increased by 14 per cent in the last year to 413, as the sector struggles with the slowdown in the hiring market across the country.
Small businesses borrow £18bn in three weeks under Bounce Back Loan Scheme May 27, 2020 Small and medium-sized businesses have borrowed more than £18bn under the government’s Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) in its first three weeks of operation. The BBLS was introduced by chancellor Rishi Sunk after criticism that the existing Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) was not being made accessible to many businesses by the banks administering [...]
Rees-Mogg: Treasury ‘hasn’t been serious’ about Covid fraud July 12, 2022 Brexit minister Jacob Rees-Mogg has today said the Treasury “hasn’t been serious” about Covid fraud amid recent figures showing that more than £10bn was lost to scammers. In a further attack on Tory leadership frontrunner Rishi Sunak, Rees-Mogg said on his podcast that the ex-chancellor’s economic policies and “the approach of the Treasury as an [...]
Clawback: How Barclays is chasing down Covid-19 business loan cash January 10, 2023 Barclays has teamed up with a specialist insolvency practitioner to recover money loaned to small businesses through the UK’s Covid support schemes. The British bank has joined forces with insolvency firm Manolete Partners to recover emergency loans paid through the UK government backed Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), the Financial Times first reported. The UK’s [...]