Hampshire Trust Bank to acquire Wesleyan Bank

Hampshire Trust Bank has announced the acquisition of Wesleyan Bank. The combined business will be led by Matthew Wyles as CEO with Tim Blackwell as CFO. As part of the acquisition, 115 employees of Wesleyan Bank will transfer with the bank and will continue to work from Wesleyan Bank’s existing offices.

Hampshire Trust Bank to acquire Wesleyan Bank

Oct 07, 2021

Hampshire Trust Bank has announced the acquisition of Wesleyan Bank. The combined business will be led by Matthew Wyles as CEO with Tim Blackwell as CFO. As part of the acquisition, 115 employees of Wesleyan Bank will transfer with the bank and will continue to work from Wesleyan Bank’s existing offices.

Shortages see SME turnover flatline

Labour and skills shortages continue to hamper economic activity across the UK, as research from Bibby Financial Services (BFS) shows SME turnover dipping for the second consecutive month in August. With restrictions now eased across the UK and the economy gearing up for the Christmas period, data from the lender’s SME Turnover Index suggests the summer boom may already be over. The Index tracks the rise and fall of UK SME turnover and comes directly from the balance sheet of more than two thousand BFS Invoice Finance clients. An increase in the headline index shows that SME turnover has grown and vice versa. The data is indexed against January 2016.

Shortages see SME turnover flatline

Sep 29, 2021

Labour and skills shortages continue to hamper economic activity across the UK, as research from Bibby Financial Services (BFS) shows SME turnover dipping for the second consecutive month in August. With restrictions now eased across the UK and the economy gearing up for the Christmas period, data from the lender’s SME Turnover Index suggests the summer boom may already be over. The Index tracks the rise and fall of UK SME turnover and comes directly from the balance sheet of more than two thousand BFS Invoice Finance clients. An increase in the headline index shows that SME turnover has grown and vice versa. The data is indexed against January 2016.

Barclays launches asset finance cashback scheme backed by £300m

Barclays has introduced a new cashback scheme for flexible asset finance, to encourage businesses to invest in vehicles, equipment, plant and machinery. An initial £300m has been made available to enable more SME hire purchase and leasing, with companies benefiting from 0.25% cashback on finance of over £10,000. Businesses with up to 250 employees and a turnover of up to c£44m are eligible to apply. The new scheme has been facilitated by Barclays’ participation in the ENABLE guarantee programme run by the British Business Bank, the UK-government-owned economic development bank.

Barclays launches asset finance cashback scheme backed by £300m

Aug 07, 2018

Barclays has introduced a new cashback scheme for flexible asset finance, to encourage businesses to invest in vehicles, equipment, plant and machinery. An initial £300m has been made available to enable more SME hire purchase and leasing, with companies benefiting from 0.25% cashback on finance of over £10,000. Businesses with up to 250 employees and a turnover of up to c£44m are eligible to apply. The new scheme has been facilitated by Barclays’ participation in the ENABLE guarantee programme run by the British Business Bank, the UK-government-owned economic development bank.

Americas

CIT upgrades B2B point-of-sale lending platform

Feb 20, 2020

The small business solutions arm of CIT Group has launched a new version of its point-of-sale lending platform. The platform is available online and on mobile devices to simplify financing for small business purchases of $2,500 or more. Business customers can shop for products, be approved for credit, select terms and receive electronic documents to secure their purchase electronically. The platform also provides real-time monthly payment quotes and automatically sends electronic documents to customers for review and e-signature.

Asia Pacific

Brand value of world’s largest banks contracts for first time since financial crisis

Feb 19, 2020

The total brand value of the world’s 500 largest banks has declined for the first time since 2009. Research by independent brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance found the global brand value of the top banks fell from $1.36 trillion at the start of 2019 to $1.33 trillion for 2020. Chinese banks occupy the top four places in the Brand Finance Banking 500, with ICBC retaining first place overall. It is the country’s biggest lender with 600 million customers.