- Balance of pure invoice finance exceeds £18.9 billion at end of Q4 2017, 5.4% up from the same point in 2016
- Quarterly growth of 0.25% remains aligned with UK GDP which rises 0.39%
New figures released by UK Finance1 show that the balance of pure invoice finance reached £18.93 billion as of the end of Q4 2017. This marks an increase of 0.25% from £18.88 billion from the end of the previous quarter and a rise of 5.4% from £17.97 billion at the end of 2016.
The growth further supports the view that invoice finance is the preferred method of business lending to small to medium businesses and suits an increasing number of businesses in the service-led economy, which is likely to drive continued development.
The quarterly figures also continue to support a close correlation with growth in UK GDP2, with the strength of the economy a crucial factor in how much businesses are willing and able to borrow. It is notable, therefore, that with UK GDP not growing as quickly as in previous years or at the rates seen across other global nations, that pure invoice finance has also seen a slowdown.
The UK economy grew by 0.39% in the final quarter of 2017 and 1.42% over the course of the year, a slower rate of growth than Q3 2017 (0.46%) and across 2016 (1.99%). Similarly, the increasing balance of invoice finance has experienced two consecutive quarters of deceleration from 4.46% and 1.57% in Q3 and Q3 2017 respectively, and substantially down on the 8.94% growth generated in Q4 2016.
Aaron Hughes, Managing Director at Equiniti Riskfactor, commented:
“Usage of invoice finance continues to grow as per the latest quarterly UK Finance figures. This method of business lending offers quick, reliable access to cash often on flexible terms while minimising the risks inherent in the cashflow systems of many small to medium enterprises such as late payments.
“While the balance of invoice finance did not grow as rapidly as it has in many quarters, it is reassuring to see that borrowing remains in correlation with the UK economy, ensuring that businesses and lenders are not over-stretching themselves. We would expect to see borrowing surpass £20 billion in 2018 as invoice finance continues to power small to medium enterprise in the UK.”
ENDS
For more information:
Sources:
1: Invoice finance and Asset Based Lending – Quarterly statistics to December 2017: http://www.abfa.org.uk/statistics/2017/Q4%202017/UK%20FINANCE%20-%20Asset-based%20finance%20statistics%20Q4%202017.pdf
2: Gross Domestic Product: chained volume measures: Seasonally adjusted £m: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/grossdomesticproductgdp/timeseries/abmi/pgdp
Temple Bar Advisory
William Barker / Sam Livingstone
Tel: 078 2796 0151 / 077 6965 5437
Email: williamb@templebaradvisory.com / saml@templebaradvisory.com
Notes to Editor:
About Equiniti
Equiniti Riskfactor is the leading provider of risk management and fraud analytics software for the global commercial finance market including factoring organisations, banks and alternative lenders. In the UK, over 90% of the receivables finance market use the leading application, EQ Riskfactor.
Equiniti Riskfactor is part of the FTSE 250 firm Equiniti Group, a specialist outsourcer delivering technology-enabled solutions to some of the best-known brands and public-sector organisations in the UK, including c.70 of the companies in the FTSE 100.
It is the UK’s leading provider of share registration, employee share plans, and associated investor services, and also has market leading positions in pension administration and software, and employee benefit schemes.
Equiniti’s services, which are delivered by over 4,300 employees, benefit 28 million people in the UK and 120 countries around the world.