Small shops face £1.7bn debt, says report by ex-boss of Iceland July 16, 2021 Small shops are struggling under £1.7bn debt, the former retail chief of Iceland, has warned. Independent businesses’ borrowing increased fourfold during the pandemic, according to the report. While the money borrowed has allowed small shops to survive, the task of paying back the loans still looms over them, said Bill Grimsey, the author of the [...]
Coronavirus loans: George Osborne calls for future government ‘debt forgiveness’ programme June 3, 2020 The government should implement a future “debt forgiveness” programme for companies borrowing through its coroanvirus loan schemes, according to former chancellor George Osborne. Osborne said small and micro businesses “who are engines of growth” should have their debts written off in several years’ time if they are still carrying debt burdens from the government’s emergency [...]
NatWest chief warns supply chain crisis curtails growth among army of small firms October 18, 2021 NatWest’s business banking boss has said the supply chain crisis is holding back growth among Britain’s army of small firms and warned over mounting problems if shortages persist. Andrew Harrison said poor availability of key goods and materials was “curtailing” growth in the sector, which comes at a vital time for small firms as they [...]
Sky launches £1m advertising fund for small businesses May 5, 2020 Sky has today launched a £1m fund that will provide free TV advertising campaigns to 100 small businesses hit by the coronavirus crisis. The scheme is available to small and medium sized businesses that have been running for at least a year in the UK with up to 50 full-time employees. Companies can nominate themselves [...]
Hundreds of firms yet to receive money through furlough scheme May 12, 2020 Hundreds of UK firms who have furloughed staff during the coronavirus pandemic are yet to receive money through the government’s scheme. The job retention scheme has been a cornerstone of the Chancellor’s coronavirus support package. It sees the government pay up to 80 per cent of wages, of up to £2,500 a month, to workers [...]
The taxing question of unsustainable corporate debt July 2, 2020 Although we are by no means out of the danger zone, eyes are starting to turn away from how the UK’s businesses can survive the Covid-19 crisis and towards how to rebuild the economy in the longer term. However, there is a very real issue facing the UK economy as a whole: are our levels [...]
Budget 2021: UK launches new Covid-19 business loan scheme March 3, 2021 Chancellor Rishi Sunak today unveiled a new loan scheme to support businesses hit by the pandemic, replacing previous emergency government funding. The Recovery Loans Scheme will offer loans from £25,000 to £10m up to the end of the year, with the government providing lenders with a 80 per cent guarantee. The programme replaces the Bounce [...]
Watch: Christian May discusses the problems with the CBILS scheme May 14, 2020 City A.M. editor Christian May has said UK SMEs are hitting a brick wall trying to access the Coronavirus Business Interruption Scheme (CBILS), and warned there may be further trouble ahead. The CBILS scheme allows companies to apply for a loan through 60 accredited lenders to stay afloat during the coronavirus crisis. But issues with [...]
Can asset management’s Covid-19 response help regain public trust? November 27, 2020 The tenth anniversary of the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) back in 2018 sparked a deluge of articles recalling the days the financial system stared into the abyss. They questioned just how close we came to complete collapse, but also whether it could happen again. Had anything changed in the decade that followed? From some perspectives [...]
200,000 more people furloughed last month as 4.7m are still on the scheme March 25, 2021 Another 200,000 people were put on furlough for the first time last month as the government paid out nearly £4bn to cover wages. HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) said it had paid £57.7bn in furlough cash to around 11.4m people since the pandemic began. Around 4.7m people were still on furlough by the end of [...]