Allica Bank makes major acquisition as it eyes £1bn SME lending goal Banking Allica Bank is set to announce a fresh acquisition as the firm looks to beef up its lending capacity for small businesses, City AM can reveal. The digital bank has snapped up London-based fintech Kriya, which specialises in embedded finance and business loans. The takeover, set to be announced on Wednesday, marks Allica’s third acquisition [...]
Michael Vaughan issues Autumn Budget plea to Rachel Reeves Business Cricket legend Michael Vaughan has issued a plea to Chancellor Rachel Reeves to help out start-ups and small-to-medium-sized (SMEs) businesses in her Autumn Budget on 26 November. Vaughan, who has recently invested in health and wellness supplement start-up Uthful, hit out at the employers’ National Insurance increase included in last year’s Autumn Budget for causing [...]
High street banks’ SME lending comeback inches forward High street banks’ return to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) inched onwards in the second quarter. The big banks have turned back to the area as the government clamps down on smaller firms’ difficulty accessing finance. Top bosses were summoned earlier this year for talks with ministers covering how to improve lending to SMEs. In [...]
Starling Bank snaps up UK fintech firm in small business push August 19, 2025 Starling Bank has snapped up its UK fintech peer Ember in a bid to ramp up its services for small business customers. The London-based firm said as part of the takeover, Ember’s tax and bookkeeping software will be built into Starling’s app and online bank. The deal, which Starling did not disclose the price of, [...]
UK SMEs paralysed by fear despite ‘sitting on piles of cash’ July 17, 2025 Small-to-medium sized companies in the UK (SMEs) are “paralysed by fear” because of geopolitical uncertainty and a lack of clear economic policy, according to new research. Accounting and advisory group Azets said a large number of SMEs are “sitting on significant piles of cash” but are nevertheless holding back on investment. The warning, issued by [...]
Alibaba.com brings CoCreate Pitch to Europe: July 8, 2025 UK SMEs invited to compete for share of £750,000 in global pitch challenge Alibaba.com, a leading platform for global B2B e-commerce, is excited to launch CoCreate Pitch – a new competition for UK and European SMEs to take their product concepts and business dreams global and reach new levels of success. As the world’s largest [...]
Built to Scale: Why the capital’s most innovative businesses are moving to Design District July 2, 2025 On a bright, sunny day on Greenwich Peninsula stands an enclave of 14 modern, uniquely designed buildings. Just one stop from Canary Wharf on the Jubilee Line and only 9 minutes from London Bridge, Design District is ideally situated near North Greenwich station, with the O2 Arena and the River Thames just moments away. What [...]