Risk Management – Is it better now? I have recently taken part in a roundtable discussion on Responsible Financial Management organised and facilitated by the Open University Business School drawing together experienced people from both the world of business and academia. In particular the discussion focussed on what has changed since the onset of the […]
‘Banks too big to fail’ – securing availability of business finance
The truth is the last 5 years have been hell on earth for anyone trying to secure business finance on anything like sensible terms. This has been particularly the case for the small- and medium-sized businesses. After the calamitous failure of Lehman Brothers in 2008, the banks dusted themselves down, reviewed what had happened and […]
Funding NOT for Lending! Are more business finance solutions needed?
The Funding for Lending scheme is coming under attack again! Originally designed to increase access to finance and help businesses with their funding problems, it seems to be having the opposite effect, official figures from the Bank of England have just confirmed. On the positive side, the cost of borrowing is falling and their have […]
Business strategy 101: Is this as good as it gets for the UK?
Should someone be calling the top of the UK economy before we all get our fingers burnt again? Is the current stock market rally and increase in consumer confidence a false dawn? Why have we gone from sack cloth and ashes just a few months ago to what is being described in parts of the media […]
Business strategy 101 – Business funding update – February 2013
The Bank of England’s ‘Trends in Lending’ report, published on 21st January shows business funding options remain hard to come by for SMEs. The underlying message from the end of 2012 and the beginning of 2013 is that Finance for the SME sector remains elusive and, as a consequence, demand is subdued. Let’s take a […]
Bank Bailouts: Is the business funding crisis an unintended consequence?
Recently, I was with some friends and business colleagues when we met another contact of mine who was unknown to the wider group. All were in business in some form or another and I was shocked by the reaction. When my contact told the group he was a banker, there was actually some booing. It […]
The bank lending paradox and its effect on demand for business finance
Bank funding is still proving elusive, particularly for the SME market. The consequences of the 2008 credit crisis and the effects of the ongoing Eurozone situation continue to be felt in our domestic lending markets: the banking sector remains deeply unpopular and under attack from all sides. A never ending string of operational and cultural […]
Supply Chain Finance – a panacea for cash flow problems?
The background Supply chain finance has come to mean many different things to many different people. It can be a simple catch-all term for a Trade Finance facility linked to an Invoice Finance facility. If you search for Supply Chain Finance on Google, you will see there are many alternative definitions. The Wikipedia entry is […]