Finance for Enterprise secures £15 million funding package to assist SMEs

The Doncaster-based firm has become the UK’s first Responsible Finance business lender to secure investment from the new source of capital and will use the funds to enhance support to SMEs based in South and East Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire during the next three years.

As a result of the investment, Finance For Enterprise has already pledged more than £3m in new business loans, helping businesses across the region to invest in new equipment and machinery, fund growth plans by employing additional members of staff, as well as providing improved cashflow.

Managing Director Arthur Foreman said: “We have been working with partners for several years to develop a model capable of securing the significant levels of investment necessary for us to grow our support to the many viable businesses which are unable to access mainstream finance and this deal means that we will be able to continue this vital work.

“The additional capital will help us to continue to support more SMEs within Yorkshire and the Humber and the North Midlands; it’s a fantastic honour for Finance For Enterprise to become the first alternative lending provider in the UK to be successful in securing access to the funding available from both Big Society Capital and Triodos Bank UK.”

Over the last five years alone, Finance For Enterprise has provided £37 million of loans; this has included £27m to around 600 established businesses and £10m to 550 new start businesses.

This funding has helped in the creation of more than 1,400 new jobs with a further 1,800 being safeguarded, resulting in a net economic contribution to the region during the five-year period of more than £140m.

The capital secured by Finance For Enterprise was made available as a result of a collaboration between Big Society Capital who, working alongside Social Investment Scotland, created a £30m fund aimed at helping the work of community-led business loan providers to support the growth of local economies throughout the UK. After securing an initial £7.5m of lending through Big Society Capital, Finance For Enterprise worked closely with Triodos Bank UK to secure an additional £7.5m in match funding.