Barclays £500m Northern fund has been launched to boost growth for small and medium-sized businesses in the North of England as part of the bank’s commitment to support the Government’s Northern Powerhouse initiative.
Barclays Northern fund is available to inject investment into businesses across the region with favourable terms for manufacturing, transport and logistics companies, helping them to grow and create new jobs.
The new fund was announced by Jes Staley as he visited Thornton Brothers Limited, in Ashington, Northumberland. The business was founded by two brothers George and Keith Thornton in 1979, who started out with £25,000 of lending from their local Barclays branch. They have since built up the business, which now employs over 70 highly-skilled engineers who modernise fleets of buses for major transport providers across the UK, including Transport for London, Go-Ahead and First Group Ltd.
Launching the fund, Jes Staley, Barclays Group CEO, said:
“Barclays has been helping businesses across the North to succeed since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, when we financed the world’s first steam locomotive passenger railway between Stockton and Darlington. Today, we face new economic challenges and opportunities posed by the digital revolution, the growth in competition from emerging markets, and of course, Brexit.
“The Northern Powerhouse is an initiative which, if delivered, would help the whole country to meet that challenge and take those economic opportunities. That is why I’m delighted to announce our £500 million Northern Powerhouse Growth Fund, enabling businesses across the North to invest in jobs and growth.
“As the UK prepares for Brexit, it’s vitally important that businesses, civic leaders and Government work together to make the Northern Powerhouse a reality. That means supporting entrepreneurs and businesses to succeed, but it also means providing more ways into high quality work.”
The Barclays fund is intended for SMEs in the Northern Powerhouse region, including: established businesses with ambitious growth plans, start-ups with high growth potential, companies with early-stage equity funding and businesses focusing on innovation, R&D and technology.
Barclays has a substantial commitment to the North of England, employing around 12,000 people in high quality jobs across the region, including nearly 1,000 apprentices in branches, contact centres and technology roles, and providing some of the country’s leading technology jobs at the bank’s Radbroke Park Centre in Knutsford, Cheshire.
Northern Powerhouse Partnership Vice-Chair and leading economist Lord Jim O’Neill said:
“I have consistently said that for the Northern Powerhouse to be a success and deliver a more balanced economy for the whole of the UK requires the support and vision of the North’s leading businesses.
“This major fund from Barclays will significantly increase the potential of our SMEs across the Northern Powerhouse to embrace the next Industrial Revolution, incorporating innovation such as robotics and AI into everything they do.
“There is real momentum growing in the Northern Powerhouse, and I hope the commitment Barclays and their CEO Jes Staley have demonstrated today will be matched by our political leaders in Whitehall so the Northern Powerhouse can truly fulfil its potential.”
Under the £500m Northern Powerhouse Growth Fund, Barclays will also be able to offer a range of business lending services to support day-to-day cash flow, expansion and investment for growth, including
- Up to £250,000 overdraft without the need for property security for transport and logistics, business services, wholesales and manufacturing companies
- Term lending fee-free up to £25,000
- Up to £100,000 lending without the need for tangible security
- Cash flow funding to invest in acquisitions and organic business growth
- Lending and debt support, which can be combined with the Government’s Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund
Small Business Minister Andrew Griffiths said:
“This Government is fully behind the entrepreneurs delivering jobs, growth and greater choice for consumers so it’s great to see businesses like Barclays providing further investment to help Northern SMEs start-up and grow.
“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, with over 1,000 being created every day across the country supporting nearly 3 million jobs and generating revenues of more than £200 billion in the North of England alone. Through our modern Industrial Strategy, we are building a Britain in which they will continue to thrive.”
The Barclays fund is intended for SMEs in the Northern Powerhouse region, including: established businesses with ambitious growth plans, start-ups with high growth potential, companies with early-stage equity funding and businesses focusing on innovation, R&D and technology.