More Funding Available For Small Business Loans
Since the onset of the credit crunch and banking crisis and throughout the recent recession, one of the biggest criticisms of the major banks in the UK, particularly those which have been partially privatised through receiving Government loans, has been their lack of support for small and medium sized businesses who may have been struggling through the difficult economic conditions and required a business loan from their bank in order to develop the business, or in some cases, just keep it afloat.
Although many banks have been claiming that they support small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) over the past couple of years, there has been a great reluctance to offer them loans, even if they have adequate security for the loan.
This week, Barclays bank has announced that it is to make an additional £88 million available to small businesses, in the form of loans through the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG), which was introduced by the Government to help businesses survive the economic downturn and obtain the funding they require.
The EFG allows Barclays to be able to offer loans to companies who ordinarily may not be able to get the business loan they needed, due to a lack of available security for the loan, despite being an otherwise viable business. Barclays has worked in association with the Government and has already offered around £150 million in loans through the EFG scheme over the last twelve months and can account for almost a quarter of all the EFG loans offered.
Steve Cooper of Barclays local business said “Time and again over the last year EFG has proven to be a superb way to support worthy businesses. We’re a big believer in EFG, through it we’ve been able to assist over 1,650 businesses with loans. The new funding we’re announcing is going to continue that good work, to help more businesses become successful and help pull the UK out of recession.”
