"Ongoing political and economic uncertainty is clearly taking its toll on businesses throughout the country as SMEs are becoming more reluctant to borrow. "
Within this, the growth rate of borrowing by large businesses fell to 4.2%, while the growth of SME borrowing was unchanged at 0.8%.
Chirag Shah, CEO of Nucleus Commercial Finance, commented: “Ongoing political and economic uncertainty is clearly taking its toll on businesses throughout the country as SMEs are becoming more reluctant to borrow. This reflects our recent research which found that almost one million SMEs are holding back from accessing additional capital due to the challenging business environment.
“The growth of UK businesses is paramount to the success of our economy. As such, it’s vital that Government and industry work together to demonstrate the great impact alternative finance can have for businesses, whether that be to expand, increase staff count or launch new products or services. Particularly now during these uncertain times, we encourage business leaders to be bold and look ahead at potential growth opportunities.”
