UK government-owned economic development bank reports strong results.
The British Business Bank today published its annual report and accounts for 2015/16, highlighting the growth and momentum of the organisation just 17 months on from its inception in November 2014. The report summarizes the Bank’s work through 90 finance partners, supporting more than 48,000 businesses with a total stock of finance of £7.5bn. The Bank supports a stock of finance of £3.1bn to small and medium sized businesses and participates in a further £4.4bn of finance to smaller mid-caps.
“During the year we have developed new finance initiatives that serve the needs of smaller businesses, supported the Government’s key priorities and delivered on our return target,” British Business Bank CEO Keith Morgan commented. “As we enter a period of increased uncertainty, we will redouble our efforts to support key segments of the small business finance market, helping the UK’s smaller businesses realize their potential.”
The British Business Bank noted its strong deliverance against all four of its objectives in a release:
- Increasing the supply of finance to smaller businesses – total stock of finance up by 45% over the year
- Helping to create a more diverse finance market – 90% of funding delivered through partners outside of the ‘Big Four’ banks, up from 79% in 2014/15
- Promoting better information in the market so smaller businesses better understand their finance options – awareness of different forms of funding has risen to 48% from 45% in 2014/15
- Managing taxpayers money efficiently – 2.0% return on capital employed, exceeding the target for the year.
“As we file our second set of accounts, it is clear that the Bank is making significant progress as a key catalyst in delivering a more effective set of financing options for smaller businesses,” British Business Bank Chairman Ron Emerson added.