Optimum Finance leading the drive in expanding invoice finance to UK businesses
Optimum Finance bring together alternative finance business leaders to discuss the role that invoice finance can have as the UK economy bounces back from the COVID-19 recession and how to get more businesses taking advantage of this excellent solution.
“For the good of SMEs, we need to work as allies.” Optimum Finance leading the drive in expanding invoice finance to UK businesses through industry collaboration in a post recession economy.
Optimum Finance hosted the first gathering of finance heads to discuss how the invoice finance industry can help more businesses with using their services as a preferred lending option. Through working collaboratively with other lenders in the market, Optimum hope to increase the total user base of invoice finance facilities, giving an enhanced, recognised funding option to the UK business population.
The panel included prominent figures from the non-bank lending space with representatives from Optimum Finance, Ultimate Finance, Hilton-Baird Financial Solutions, Reward Capital, Just Cashflow, and RSM as well as government representation in the form of British Business Bank and The Small Business Commissioner.
All panel members were in agreement in that invoice finance could play a huge role for businesses as they come out of the recession caused by COVID-19. Finance facilities available can be used to cover deferred loans, taxes, and rental payments, which will be an added strain on businesses’ cash flow. It has been suggested that the economic growth following the recession will be the largest bounce back since World War II, and so businesses will need somewhere that they can access increased levels of cash flow if they are to continue to surf the wave of recovery. Debtor ledgers are an often-untapped resource in generating additional funding and helping businesses to access this through advice, personal service, and linked technology is a priority for the industry.
A key finding from the discussions was that many businesses are in fact aware of invoice finance but choose to use alternative options due to outdated misconceptions. Optimum and the other businesses involved hope to work together, potentially each talking with industry bodies and regional business hubs to reposition invoice finance as the low risk, high gain funding option that it truly is.
CEO of Optimum Finance, Ant Persse, commented on the event: “I’m really glad that the participation in our round table event from other lenders has been so candid, reaffirming our main goal in helping the SME community. The outcomes of this meeting will have the greatest benefit to SMEs as a whole and I’m keen to get actionable improvements on how businesses are catered for by our industry.”
The full contents of the discussions will be released shortly via Optimum Finance.
