Start-ups and small businesses across Wales looking to find innovative ways of financing their growth plans can now turn to a new comprehensive digital guide, available for the first time in both Welsh and English.
The Business Finance Guide has been developed to support the thousands of businesses currently turning to online platforms to seek alternative forms of finance. Led by ICAEW and the British Business Bank, a coalition of major UK-wide bodies have contributed to the new Business Finance Guide – a journey from start-up to growth. Raising finance is a key issue for most small and micro businesses which make up 99% of all Welsh firms and employ more than 60% of the private sector workforce.
How businesses seek finance today:
SMEs are still most likely to go only to their main bank when seeking finance, despite a steady increase in alternatives
Three out of five SMEs only contact one provider when seeking finance
Recent research by Amicus Finance showed increasing frustration amongst SMEs with high-street banks, with 16 per cent of 400 SME business owners turned down by a mainstream lender, up from 11 per cent in 2015
31 per cent said their inability to secure finance terms with traditional lenders has led to a lost deal or investment opportunity
Use of equity finance is on the rise, research by the British Business Bank shows that 2015 was a strong year, with deal numbers increasing by 5% from 2014 to 1,270 and total investment value increasing by 58% to £3.5bn
With more and more businesses in Wales recognising the importance of the Welsh language to their customers and staff, ICAEW has produced a new Welsh version of the Business Finance Guide.
Commenting on the new Welsh language Business Finance Guide, Martin Warren, ICAEW’s Director for Wales said:
“Welsh businesses need to make better use of their most powerful tool to grow – information and advice. Although banks are often the first place many people go to when they’re seeking business finance, there are now many alternatives. The Business Finance Guide is an excellent digital resource and enables businesses and their advisors to find out more about the options available to them to meet their specific needs. The ICAEW is proud to make the guide available in Welsh as well as English. This is the first time that we have published a guide in Welsh and hope that entrepreneurs in all parts of the country will use it to find the most suitable finance for their circumstances.”
Keith Morgan, Chief Executive of the British Business Bank said:
“The British Business Bank was set up with the aim of making finance markets work better for smaller UK businesses, and building awareness amongst SMEs of the full range of finance options available to them is a big part of that mission. I hope businesses across Wales find our Welsh-language version of the Business Finance Guide useful in enabling them to find out about their funding choices to help them realise their potential.”
Rhys Harris, Director of Owain Bebb a’i Gwmni Chartered Accountants who have offices in Caernarfon, Pwllheli and Aberystwyth said:
“We are very pleased that the Business Finance Guide is available in Welsh as well as in English. Many of our clients are based in North West and rural Wales, Welsh language heartlands, therefore we deal with most of our clients in Welsh. Having this resource will enable us to explain the different financing options without having to turn to English language documents.”
Print copies of the new Welsh language Business Finance Guide are available on request from ICAEW Wales.