Despite a backdrop of political and economic uncertainty surrounding the EU Referendum, small business lending hit an all-time high over the past 12 months, increasing by 29.8 per cent to GBP20.7 billion.
That’s according to the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) latest annual figures, which are based on business written by NACFB brokers between July 2015 and June 2016.
Over the past year, lending to SMEs has exceeded the pre-recession high of 2007. It’s also the seventh consecutive year that total lending to small businesses has grown.
However, while traditional forms of lending, such as commercial mortgages, has had an impressive 12 months, with business written over GBP5.3 billion, up 54.8 per cent on last year, lending in the alternative finance space, which includes peer-to-peer and crowdfunding, has slowed.
Business written by NACFB brokers over the past 12 months has fallen by 14.4 per cent, down from GBP848 million to GBP725 million.
The commercial mortgage business has benefited from renewed confidence in longer term lending, with a wider range of deals to choose from and an increased appetite from the traditional high street lenders. Since 2013 commercial mortgage business written by NACFB members has more than doubled, up from GBP2.23 billion in 2014.
Across the other finance sectors, buy-to-let has also had a very strong year, despite the various tax changes that have been announced over the past 18 months. Lending hasn’t been materially affected by the stamp duty hike, with close to GBP5 billion of business written in the past year; more than a third (39.1 per cent) higher than the previous 12 months.
Other areas that have seen strong growth include invoice finance (up 22.8 per cent), leasing and equipment finance (up 10.5 per cent), development finance (up 49.8 per cent) and bridging finance (up 74.6 per cent).
Adam Tyler of the NACFB says: “It’s been a phenomenal and record breaking year across the commercial finance sector. With the UK’s SME community showing a real appetite for growth, despite the uncertainty of Brexit, we have seen small business lending at levels above even those registered before the financial crash.
“Interestingly, the figures show that there has been a significant switch by small businesses back to traditional forms of lending. The alternative finance sector has grown at such a pace that it was inevitable that rate of growth couldn’t be sustained. Peer-to-peer will always have its place, but alternative forms of funding are no longer the only future; they are just one of many forms of finance available to small and medium sized businesses.
“There has never been a better time for businesses to secure finance, as the commercial finance sector continues to innovate and diversify. The challenge is to make sure the message reaches SMEs that there are many routes to funding.
“Although the NACFB membership is at its highest ever level, there is still a great deal of work to be done to raise the awareness, not just of the NACFB, but of the funding options offered by NACFB broker members. Commercial finance brokers have a crucial role to play in helping SMEs take advantage of the new opportunities available to them, particularly as we look to broker new trade agreements with countries outside the EU.”
