Business bank timetable will boost confidence of growing companies

21st March 2013

Commenting on the announcement by Business Secretary, Vince Cable, which outlines the timetable for the delivery of a British Business Bank, Dr Adam Marshall, Director of Policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:   -The BCC has been calling for a business bank since 2011, so we are pleased that progress to get it up and running is finally underway.

Now that a firm timetable for its delivery is in place, businesses will begin to feel that the promised business bank is starting to get momentum.   -Although we are huge supporters of having our own business bank here in the UK, it has to address the long-term structural gaps in the business finance market for it to be a game changer. That means lending directly to growing companies that have previously failed to get the growth capital they need, and building a bank on a larger scale than the current proposals suggest.   -The limited success of previous government schemes to boost lending all shared the fatal flaw of being totally dependent on the existing banking infrastructure in the UK. We would urge the government to reconsider its current proposals and inject more capital into the business bank, while also ensuring it has a direct relationship with investment hungry, fast growing businesses. Only then will it be able to drastically improve the business access to finance environment, and drive growth over the long-term.