In last quarter’s figures released from the Bank of England showed yet again that lending to the SME sector and new start business is down. No matter what people say, figures do not lie. Total business lending, that is loans and overdrafts fell by £3.8 bn in August, and SME lending fell by £0.7bn. This is echoed in Europe, well really most of Europe, Germany is always the exception.
If looking at the whole European picture, our figures are very good in comparison. Spain’s lending was down by a whopping 66%, Portugal down by 45%, but you would half expect those figures. The figures you would not expect are that French lending was down by 37%, and even more surprising, the Dutch by 32%.
So where is the good news, well it is very simple. Oak is currently arranging funding for more new start business’s than ever before. No tablets of stone underwriting here, just straight forward common sense.
And there is more good news, after attending the Inter Europe Airport show in Munich, it became very apparent that with local funding being severely reduced, it gives UK SME’s an opportunity to expand further into European markets by offering finance or leasing to their customer utilising Oak’s European leasing presence.
It’s hardly rocket science is it, but the best ideas are always very simple. Opportunities are always there, they do not disappear, but you might have to hunt a little bit harder to uncover them.
As we approach D day in the United States in respect of their budget debt ceiling, another country had exactly the same problems, but has hardly caused a ripple on the surface. The Dutch government were in a similar position in respect to their budget. However, they have secured a four party coalition to pass the new budget.
I will leave you with the thought for all of Europe’s problems, at least we can overcome them without a last ditch drama. Now that must a silver lining!