As a business owner myself and being in the Finance Market for over 20 years I’m fully aware of the challenges companies are facing right now. Many of us have struggled with cash flow over the past few months and looking for ways to survive this climate.
At Reality Finance we have spoken to hundreds of customers, providing advice on cost savings, freeing up cash flow, and the often-complicated process of applying for a business loan. We are seeing more and more customers turning to finance as a possible solution to help them navigate these challenging months.
We’ve been working hard with our Customers, Vendors, and Suppliers to offer deferred payments, payment holidays, CBILS backed loans and Asset Finance options.
We are fully accredited to support our customers and suppliers with CBILS backed facilities. These come in different forms, according to the needs and situation of your business.
The list of Lenders accredited for CBILS is growing daily – at first the British Business Bank started with a handful of mainstream lenders. But as the list grows, we have more and more specialist Lenders who have appropriate lending criterial for certain markets. Such as the Hospitality Industry, IT, Warehousing and Construction.
So how many CBILS Lenders do we now have on our Panel?
The list is growing daily as the Banks prepare their schemes. We have specialist Lenders such as Aldermore, Hitachi Capital, Close Brothers, and Secure Trust Bank. We also have Funding Circle and Iwoca who are well known for their flexible Loan Facilities.
What are the Challenges for Businesses applying for CBILS?
Applications are made directly to a panel of approximately 40 accredited lenders using their standard underwriting criteria. This is where things can be tricky for businesses out there - underwriting criteria are not standardized across the board. You could approach one lender and get a decline, or another who may accept the application. This makes it very difficult for a business to know which Lender to turn to.
This is where Reality Finance can provide you with advice and knowledge to point you in the right direction. We have already successfully provided CBILS for both Loans and Asset Finance to a handful of customers and know what Lenders to approach, depending on your needs.
Read more in our related Blog Piece for CBILS Lending
What are the key benefits of a CBILS loan?
There are some attractive and compelling facets to the CBILS scheme, for example, any arrangement fees are waived, personal guarantees are not required up to the £250k cap and the interest charges for the first 12 months are covered by the Government.
In addition, some of the following benefits may also apply:
No upfront or early settlement fees
Interest-free rates for the first 12 months (covered by the British Bank)
Competitive borrowing rates
Terms from 1 to 5 years
Borrow between £50,001 and £250,000
What are the typical criteria for CBILS Lending?
In terms of eligibility, the business must have a sound proposal for borrowing the money they need to survive in these difficult times.
In addition, the business will need to meet the following criteria:
To be UK based in its business activity with an annual turnover of no more than £45m
Applications must be for business purposes only
Businesses must generate more than 50% of its turnover from trading activity
Businesses can borrow between £50k and £250k
Finance terms are between 12 and 60 months
For the applicant business not to have been in financial difficulty prior to the COVID-19 outbreak
In some cases, a minimum of 3 years of trading history
I would encourage any business out there right now to get in touch with a specialist Finance Broker to discuss the options available to them. Now CBILS is up and running with more and more Lenders and the list of options grows larger, an independent Broker can steer you in the right direction.
