Category: Asset Finance Can Help Your Business (page 4 of 4)

Vets Equipment Finance

5th May 2016 / admin / Comments Off

If you run a veterinary practice today, you will need all kinds of equipment to ensure that things run smoothly and efficiently in addition to ensuring the best standards of care.

Of course all the equipment you need these days doesn’t come cheap, which is why finding ways to finance your assets can be helpful if not essential. The great thing about asset finance for vets is, you can use it not only for large expensive items of machinery such as x-ray processors but also smaller items such as thermometers and other equipment you might use every day.

Breaking it down in simple terms, there are two main asset finance options for vets. These are leasing and hire purchase.

If you want to keep costs down, leasing can often be the better option and even more so if your needs are short term. Your monthly costs will be less because you aren’t buying your equipment and at the end of the agreement you can simply return it or renew the lease. Your approval rate on leasing will also be higher than for higher purchase.

With higher purchase on the other hand you will eventually own an asset permanently although you will need a higher deposit and the monthly payments are likely to be more. Again approval rates are high for asset finance lending on equipment bought on higher purchase as long as your credit rating is good.

How To Grow Your Business on a Shoestring

4th April 2016 / admin / Comments Off

It’s in every entrepreneur’s nature to want to grow their business, however doing it on a shoestring can be difficult but not impossible.

One of the most important things to think about as an entrepreneur starting a new business is future direction. Are you thinking big? Are you making plans to take the business to the next level?

If you are, then this is an important first step. As soon as you have the vision for where you want to take your business then you will need funds to bring your plans to fruition. This is where a lot of entrepreneurs fail.

They can often end up stuck in a rut without exploring the funding options available and rely on the business itself to generate the funds for growth. Unfortunately as almost every business owner knows, you can’t always rely on sales to fund expansion.

So it is worth considering funding options that will help clear the obstacles to future growth. These can include: 

Friends and family
Many successful business have started with help from friends and family. Just make sure you have a proper agreement set up from the outset in writing, just in case things don’t go according to plan.

The bank
Ok this may not be the best source of funding available. You will have a lot of interest to pay and banks won’t just lend to anyone, but if you can present a strong business plan, then there are plenty out there who will be willing to take the risk even if you are a small business owner.

Alternative business finance
Alternative forms of finance are flourishing. Asset based finance, crowd funding, funding from business angels and so on. You may even get better terms than from the bank with these alternatives.

Asset Finance Hits A 7-Year High Among UK Firms

2nd March 2016 / admin / Comments Off

According to the latest statistics released by asset based finance companies, the use of asset finance among UK firms continues to grow with £29bn raised in total in 2015. This was the highest total for seven years.

The 29bn raised was 12% up on 2014 and shows that businesses are increasingly turning their attention to this alternative and often more convenient way to raise funds. The last time money raised through asset finance reached this point was in 2008 when a total of 30.8bn was raised by businesses.

The figures show that while businesses are now exploring other ways to raise money and positive about future growth, there is less trust in the banks when it comes to delivering the money needed to help business survive and flourish.

Access to finance will be important for many businesses who may be affected by the uncertainty surrounding a potential exit from the EU. Those businesses will be busy preparing for various scenarios which include a fall in the value of the pound and potentially more difficult trading conditions.

Asset finance is an excellent alternative to bank lending because it uses the assets a business already has at its disposal to raise funds.

New Business Asset Finance Expected To Grow 10% in 2014

14th January 2016 / admin / Comments Off

The Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) has revealed statistics showing that the asset finance industry has grown for the 25th consecutive month. As a result of this and current market conditions the industry expects further growth of 10% in new business asset finance in 2016.

According to the latest figures from the FLA asset finance relating to new business saw an increase of 3% in October 2015 compared to the October 2014. This represented a total of £2.51bn overall. Car finance was by the far the biggest growth area in leasing with 6% year on year growth recorded followed by IT equipment finance (2%) and plant and machinery accounting for 1%.

IT equipment finance was worth a total of £170m in the 12 months to October 2015 while car leasing finance represented £864m.

The one area that bucked the positive trend was business equipment finance which saw a negative year on year trend, falling by 12%. This meant that the sector was worth £159m overall.

Geraldine Kilkelly, head of research and chief economist at the FLA, said: “October saw continued growth across most of the main asset finance sectors, although the slowdown in emerging markets in recent months and falls in commodity prices have hit demand for construction and agricultural equipment finance.”

Asset Finance Now Funding 32% of Business Investment

4th November 2015 / admin / Comments Off

With the announcement this month that the government are considering scrapping grants for research and development and replacing them with loans, at least asset finance is providing a boost to UK businesses.

According to the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) asset finance funding is continuing to grow at a rapid rate with August seeing the twenty third consecutive month of growth. Asset finance new business increased by 5% on the previous month which shows that more and more businesses are considering asset finance as a realistic alternative to other forms of business funding.

The percentage of business investment in machinery, equipment and software financed by asset finance currently stands at 32% according to the latest figures available.

Geraldine Kilkelly, Head of Research and Chief Economist at the FLA, said

“The revised ONS business investment figures show that the industry’s contribution to the funding of investment is much greater than previous data suggested. The percentage of UK investment in machinery, equipment and software has grown from a low of just over a quarter in 2010 to almost a third in the year to June 2015.”

Aircraft, ships and rolling stock finance and IT equipment has seen by far the biggest increase in asset funding with 119% and 81% increases compared to August 2014.

Record Number Of Firms Using Assets To Raise Cash

6th October 2015 / admin / Comments Off

According to new data released by the Asset Based Finance Association (ABFA) a record number of businesses are now using assets to raise cash.

The assets typically used by businesses to raise money include plant, machinery and real estate as firms are increasingly seeking better alternatives to bank loans and overdrafts. Funding that is secured against assets offers businesses an opportunity to borrow money at a cheaper rate because lending is secured. Assets can either be physical or loans can be secured against the outstanding debts owed to a business.

A total of £4.2bn was secured against assets by businesses in the UK, which represents a 9% increase on the £3.8bn recorded in 2014. The overall amount of funding secured by businesses through asset based financing stood at 19.3bn to the end of June 2015.

The figures indicate that businesses are embracing this innovative form of financing rather than relying on other more expensive and less secure forms of lending. While asset based finance can be used to help businesses that may be struggling with cash flow issues, it is also being used as a positive means of driving investment in future growth.

Asset based finance is not just restricted to areas such as real estate, plant and machinery it can also be used to borrow against more unusual assets such as IP and forward income.

3 Simple Ways Asset Finance Could Help Your Business

17th June 2015 / admin / Comments Off

Being a business owner often involves a lot of big decisions. This is often the case when there are plans for expansion or there are cash flow issues that need to be addressed alongside actually keeping the business running while all this is going on. The good news is there are alternatives to common forms of lending then may be better suited to your needs.

Refinancing
Do you know how much value you have in your business assets? Refinancing is where you can free up cash from the business assets you already own. What many business owners aren’t aware of is the possibility of using assets that are subject to outstanding finance agreements. You can refinance your business in this way at any time at it can give you great flexibility.

Finance Leasing
Often buying new equipment for your business can be prohibitively expensive. Fortunately it is possible to buy the equipment you need without it leading to problems with cash flow. You can even buy without putting in a deposit and funds start from as little as £1,000. You can also fund any software you need.

Sale and lease back agreements
If you have already bought equipment and as a result lack the funds to spend further on your business then sale and leaseback is a way to release the money you have already spent by selling equipment to a funder who will then lease it back to you for an agreed period of time.

If Asset Finance is right for your business give us a call today to find out more about your options.

Asset Finance Can Help Your Business

8th September 2014 / admin / Comments Off

Asset Finance helping your business

For small businesses, cash flow concerns can arise unexpectedly to take a significant toll on day-to-day operations and your plans to build for the future.

In order to offset these issues and keep their company ticking along, many business managers are turning to asset-based finance as a solution to their short-term cash flow problems.

What does asset-based financing involve?

Asset financing is a process through which a company uses its own assets to gain access to funding that would otherwise be unavailable to it, usually owing to poor or mediocre credit ratings.

A company might decide to sell some of its assets in order to raise the short-term finance they need or they may use their assets as collateral to access secured loans that might ease cash flow concerns or help them make other important investments.

If you’re a business boss considering what assets you might have to sell or to leverage as part of a credit arrangement, you may think immediately of physical equipment or property assets. However, accounts receivable and invoices issued to reputable customers are assets too and they can be used to generate a cash advance via invoice factoring or to secure a loan through invoice discounting.

A useful option

Asset financing, whether it involves your company’s property, inventory or outstanding invoices, can give small businesses the lifeline of access to cash or credit in the short term. In an ideal world, there would be no need for a business to use their assets to raise finance but as a means of weathering a financial storm, the option can often prove absolutely invaluable.

The reality for many small businesses is that their applications for loans are often turned down routinely and the legacy of financial difficulties can linger long after the biggest obstacles have been overcome. Asset-based financing can be a great help to companies that have established strong operational foundations but run into short-term difficulties that need immediate resolution.

Avoiding worst-case scenarios

Asset-based finance is also particularly useful and important for businesses that are struggling to keep up with their bills and are facing the prospect of becoming insolvent. When creditors are clamouring for payment and it is impinging on your ability to function smoothly or at all then asset-financing options can become appealing and practical solutions.

What you need to know

Asset-based financing isn’t right for every business and there are issues that company bosses should be aware of before entering into such an agreement. First of all, when you establish a line of credit with your assets as collateral then you run the risk of losing them under circumstances in which you are unable to pay back any interest accrued.

With invoice factoring, you are only obliged to pay the interest on amounts borrowed via the lines of credit secured. Taking on debts in this fashion should always be considered carefully but, when used appropriately, using your invoices as assets in a financing arrangement can afford very valuable and even vital flexibility to small businesses in any sector.