UK SMEs lose £8.72bn every year managing company expenses, survey says

The UK's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are collectively losing more than £8.72bn every year as a result of the time taken to complete weekly finance related tasks, according to a new survey.
Many small firms are struggling with paper work Photo: PAMany small firms are struggling with paper work Photo: PA
Many small firms are struggling with paper work Photo: PA

The survey of 1,200 businesses, conducted independently by YouGov, shows the size of the administrative burden facing employees of many UK SMEs, who spend an average of just over four hours every week managing paperwork.

Many small firms are concerned about the time it takes them to manage a wide range of financial outgoings, such as invoicing, budgeting and forecasting.

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The study, which was conducted on behalf of multi-user spending account Soldo, also found that larger companies face the most challenging cash flow management problems.

However, it’s the startups that appear to struggle the most with day to day cash flow management, with 15 per cent of them reporting that they find managing outgoings particularly difficult.

Carlo Gualandri, the founder and chief executive of Soldo, said, “The time and money taken up by day to day management of a company’s cash flow is astonishing but not surprising. If staff were freed up to dedicate their time to the activities that made a big difference to the company, productivity levels would rocket.”

Soldo has launched Soldo Business, a multi-user expense account for business people who want to manage their business expense cycle in the most efficient way.

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