Government accused of ignoring SMEs as firms fight for survival June 26, 2025 Three in five small business owners feel ignored by the government, according to a fresh survey, an increasing amount firms raise the alarm on their fight to stay afloat. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are calling on Westminster to take further measures to support businesses after 57 per cent fear for their survival in the [...]
High street banks’ SME lending comeback won’t rattle challengers June 20, 2025 High street banks are flocking back to small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) lending but face a battle against fintechs which have captured their spot. The Big Four banks have shed their market stronghold in SME lending. Research from the British Business Bank in March revealed challenger banks make up around 60 per cent of gross [...]
Simply: Fintech SME lender expands loan book as firms turn to debt finance June 17, 2025 Simply Asset Finance notched a record loan total in the last year as firms turned to debt financing to fuel their expansion plans. The UK lender to small- and medium-sized enterprises topped £1.75bn in the total cumulative value of all loans they’ve approved and funded after the firm’s loan book expanded by £505m over 2024. [...]
High street banks ramp up SME lending to highest since 2022 June 16, 2025 High street banks are scaling up their lending to small businesses, with the first quarter of 2022 hitting the highest amount since 2022. Lenders issued £4.6bn worth of loans in the first three months of the year marking a 14 per cent year-on-year jump. The rise was driven by a surge of lending to agriculture, [...]
Starling Bank: The rise and fall of a fintech darling May 30, 2025 Over a decade ago three fintechs entered the banking scene and set their sights on reshaping its landscape. Starling, Monzo and Revolut rapidly expanded as they leveraged modern tech to streamline banking operations, enhance consumer experience and disrupt traditional financial models. The trio of fintech darlings ballooned customer bases in record numbers. But as two [...]
Secure Trust bolsters lending as it ‘monitors’ global turbulence May 15, 2025 Specialist lender Secure Trust Bank delivered an upbeat first-quarter trading statement on Thursday with growth across lending and deposits. The London-listed lender posted a 3.2 per cent quarterly increase in its net lending to £3.7bn. This was up 10.5 per cent from the first quarter of 2024. The firm said its business finance and consumer [...]
Revolut, Allica, Zopa: Analysts back ‘enduring value’ of UK fintech May 13, 2025 UK fintech received a wealth of praise from Peel Hunt analysts in a fresh sector note following a year of rapid growth for the industry. Fintech firms booked record profits in 2024 and have transitioned from disrupting the banking climate to direct competition with traditional lenders. Revolut topped 52.5 million customers in 2024, surpassing Europe’s [...]
Metro Bank shares soar as lender’s turnaround gathers pace May 8, 2025 Metro Bank said there was a “significant increase” in quarter one profit against the second half of 2024 during a trading update on Thursday. Shares in the bank jumped nearly four per cent during early trading. The London-based firm said it was “confident” it would meet full-year targets after a “structurally higher” net interest margin, [...]
Ministers call in HSBC, Natwest and Lloyds bosses for small business lending talks May 6, 2025 Top bank bosses were summoned for talks with ministers on Tuesday after a government report revealed that small businesses were having difficulty securing loans. Senior executives from HSBC, Natwest and Lloyds will be in attendance for the meeting, which will be chaired by minister for small business Gareth Thomas. A report from the Department of [...]
The UK’s fastest growing fintech Allica Bank delivers another record year April 16, 2025 Allica Bank, the UK’s fastest growing fintch, nearly doubled its profit in the last year after another period of rapid growth. The digital bank, which caters towards small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), increased pre-tax profits 86 per cent to £29.9m. Lending activity grew over £1bn in 2024 and revenue shot up 68 per cent to [...]