The British Business Bank today announced Finance For Enterprise (FFE) as the fifth accredited delivery partner under its Community ENABLE Funding programme.
FFE will be allocated £43.5m under the programme to provide loans between £25,001 and £250,000, to unlock capital for underserved smaller businesses across England and Wales.
The loans can be utilised for any legitimate business purpose, including funding growth, purchase of equipment or machinery, working capital, business expansion plans, as well as supporting business purchases (MBO/MBI transactions).
The borrowers provided with these loans are expected to include businesses located in disadvantaged areas, those who have less awareness of the finance options available to them, or underrepresented groups, such as female and Ethnic Minority-led businesses declined by traditional lenders.
The programme works by increasing the availability of funding to social impact SME-lenders, and in turn the smaller businesses they serve in local communities. It is aimed at Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), and will provide a significant boost to the sector, supporting up to £150m of lending over its first two years.
With the accreditation of FFE, a total of £82m has now been allocated to CDFIs under the programme, demonstrating strong progress towards this target.
CDFIs are regional, social impact SME-lenders that provide debt finance and support to underserved smaller businesses, which may find it difficult to access finance from mainstream lenders. One of the key objectives of the programme is to help develop the whole sector, so many more such businesses can access the finance they need.
CDFIs typically have strong, local knowledge of the smaller businesses they support and the communities they reside in. As such, they are well placed to provide the right finance which can unlock the potential in those communities. Through this knowledge, they can help remove barriers to accessing finance experienced by businesses.
Founded in 1985, Finance For Enterprise was created with the goal of initially boosting Doncaster’s business economy, by combining practical business advice alongside small business lending.
Since then, we have expanded the geographical areas we operate in, supporting businesses across England and Wales.
Over the past five years, Finance For Enterprise has provided £54m of loans. The funding we’ve provided has helped to create more than 1,400 new jobs and safeguarded 1,800 roles. This has resulted in a net economic contribution of more than £140m.
Blair McDougall, Minister for Small Business, said: “Through our Plan for Small Business, we are breaking down the barriers SMEs face when accessing finance.
“This includes supporting the growth of organisations like Finance For Enterprise that lend to underserved smaller firms, helping create jobs, opportunities, and growth for local economies in regions like Yorkshire and The Humber.”
Reinald de Monchy, Chief Banking Officer, British Business Bank, said: “It is great to welcome Finance For Enterprise as the fifth accredited lender under the Community ENABLE Funding programme. FFE supports a breadth of small businesses across multiple regions across the UK, and the facility size it has been allocated demonstrates our belief in their ability to carry out their mission effectively and support a host of smaller businesses.”
Andrew Austwick, Managing Director at Finance For Enterprise, said: “We are delighted to become an accredited delivery partner of the Community ENABLE Funding programme. This allocation of up to £43.5m will allow us to support more underserved businesses, helping them access the finance they need to grow, create jobs, and strengthen their local communities. We look forward to working with the British Business Bank to make a real difference to excluded SMEs.”
