Small businesses will benefit from a new fast-track finance scheme providing loans with a 100% government-backed guarantee for lenders, the Chancellor announced today (Monday 27 April).
Rishi Sunak said the new Bounce Back Loans scheme, which will provide loans of between £2000 and £50,000, would help bolster the existing package of support available to the smallest businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
The scheme has been designed to ensure that small firms who need vital cash injections to keep operating can get finance in a matter of days, and comes alongside the £6 billion awarded in business grants, supporting 4 million jobs through the job retention scheme and generous tax deferrals supporting hundreds of thousands of firms.
The government, which has been consulting extensively with business representatives about the design of the new scheme, will provide lenders with a 100% guarantee for the loan and pay any fees and interest for the first 12 months.
No repayments will be due during the first 12 months.
Bounce Back Loan Scheme
The loans will be easy to apply for through a short, standardised online application. The loan should reach businesses within days- providing immediate support to those that need it as easily as possible.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, said: “Our smallest businesses are the backbone of our economy and play a vital role in their communities. This new rapid loan scheme will help ensure they get the finance they need quickly to help survive this crisis.”
“This is in addition to business grants, tax deferrals, and the job retention scheme, which are already helping to support hundreds of thousands of small businesses.”
Business Secretary Alok Sharma said: “Our small businesses are vital in ensuring our communities thrive and will be crucial in creating jobs and securing economic growth as we recover.”
“This rapid loan scheme offers additional protection so small companies across the country can get access to the finance they need immediately, as part of the unprecedented package of support we have put in place.”
Dame Carolyn Fairbairn, CBI Director-General, said: “The Chancellor’s new 100% guaranteed loan scheme for small businesses is transformational. Sole traders, micro-firms and entrepreneurs will now have a simple route to fast finance to stay afloat, without red tape or time-consuming checks.”
“Thousands of businesses could be saved by this lifeline. Banks now need to continue their work in overdrive to get the loans flowing faster.”
The scheme will launch for applications on Monday 4 May. Firms will be able to access these loans through a network of accredited lenders.
The government will work with lenders to ensure loans delivered through this scheme are advanced as quickly as possible and agree a low standardised level of interest for the remaining period of the loan.
The Bounce Back Loans scheme has been added to a range of support for business including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) which has seen more than 500,000 claims since opening and amounting to a value of £4.5 billion, £6 billion worth of business grants which have benefited half a million business properties, and 20,000 loans provided by the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS).
To learn more about the various financial support available to business visit the D2N2 Business Assistance webpage.
