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1: Paul Wilson - Federation of Small Businesses

Written by Steve Savage | Jan 25, 2023 3:15:17 PM
 
Kicking off series 3 is Paul Wilson!
 
Paul is the Policy Director at the Federation of Small Businesses. The FSB aims to provide a powerful voice for the UK’s 5.5 million small businesses and the self-employed. Paul’s policy team publishes regular reports on a range of topics, their recent report ‘Credit Where Credit's Due’ is all about small businesses and their need for external finance to grow.
 
59% of small businesses have applied for external finance over the last five years, and only 37% of those firms found the application for traditional loans easy…
There has been an alarming reduction of nearly half a million small businesses over the last two years. Given recent economic turmoil, there is a risk of another credit crunch where the UK financial market may begin squeezing lending to small businesses, reminiscent of the period following the 2008 financial crash.
 
Small businesses sit at the heart of their communities and external finance needs to remain as accessible as possible to help firms in these difficult times.
 
Key talking points:
  • Small business finance market – what is the state of play given the current cost-of-doing-business crisis and interest rate hikes?
  • The demand for capital – why do small businesses need finance and where are they looking to invest?
  • What challenges do small businesses face this year?
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