A brand new business loan fund has been introduced to support growing Worcestershire based businesses that are unable to access finance from traditional lenders.
The Worcestershire Business Loan Fund, which is set to deliver £2.2 million to local SMEs over the next three years, was launched to over 80 local professionals and business owners at a breakfast event on Wednesday 12th October.
The new initiative has been established by Worcestershire County Council and one of the region’s largest providers of business loans, BCRS Business Loans.
Offering loans from £10,000 to £50,000 the new business loan fund has been especially designed to meet the needs of Worcestershire small and medium sized businesses that are viable but unable to access finance from traditional lenders, such as banks.
BCRS Business Loans Chief Executive, Paul Kalinauckas, welcomed the loan fund at the launch event:
“We are delighted to be able to offer this loan fund in conjunction with Worcestershire County Council. Our aim is to leave no viable business unsupported and this new initiative will enable us to increase our support for growing Worcestershire businesses. BCRS understand that getting business finance can sometimes be a problem. Lack of track record, unreasonable security arrangements or past financial problems may be hindering the process.
“The BCRS model is of an approachable lender that assesses each individual case on its own merits. We operate very much with a traditional lending ethos rather than impersonal computerised credit scoring.
“During the application process, our dedicated Business Development Manager for Worcestershire, Angie Preece, will arrange a face-to-face meeting to understand the needs of each business and will provide hands on support. BCRS has invested over £31 million in over 1,000 SMEs across the West Midlands since it was established in 2002 and we look forward to serving the Worcestershire Business Community.” concluded Paul.
As a not for profit organisation, social and economic impact is at the heart of everything that BCRS Business Loans do, and they have helped create an additional 743 jobs and safeguard over 914, which in turn generated an additional £60 million of economic impact in the West Midlands in 2015.
Cllr Ken Pollock, Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Economy, Skills and Infrastructure said: “A strong and successful economy is key to the future success of the county because with this we will have a sustainable economy that will provide an income base for the services and investments we all want to see.
“This loan fund will be a tremendous boost for those businesses who are having difficulties getting finance despite having a strong business case. The fund has been a resounding success in other areas and we are very positive about what it can achieve here, specifically assisting business growth, protecting jobs and building the local economy by overcoming access to finance issues.”