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SMEs in the North West will be able to continue to access finance to support investment and growth following the launch of the Growth Guarantee Scheme from the British Business Bank.
The scheme, the successor to the Recovery Loan Scheme introduced after the Covid-19 pandemic, is expected to support around 11,000 smaller businesses through to 31 March 2026.
The British Business Bank has so far accredited 41 lenders for the Growth Guarantee Scheme. Following their accreditation, each lender needs to put in place the operations required to start lending under the scheme, and they will be listed on the British Business Bank website once they are ready to start receiving applications.
Reinald de Monchy, Managing Director, Guarantee and Wholesale Solutions, British Business Bank, said:
“We’re excited to launch the Growth Guarantee Scheme, which will allow lenders to offer more finance to their customers. This will help to generate more sustainable growth across the UK and provide a springboard to many smaller businesses to scale up or stay ahead.”
20 lenders have so far confirmed they are open for applications; further lenders are going through the accreditation process and will be accredited over the coming weeks. These lenders will provide a wide range of finance types to smaller businesses, including term loans, overdrafts, asset finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending.
Maximum facility sizes are up to £2 million per business. Minimum facility sizes start at £1,000 for asset finance, invoice finance and asset-based lending, and £25,001 for term loans and overdrafts. ?Businesses that took out a Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS), Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) or a Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS) facility before 30 June 2024 are not prevented from accessing the scheme.
The Growth Guarantee Scheme provides the lender with a 70% government-backed guarantee and the borrower always remains 100% liable for the debt. The British Business Bank will administer the Growth Guarantee Scheme on behalf of the Secretary of State for Business and Trade.