Financing business

Lending through the Government's Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) scheme to small businesses picked up to £84 million the second quarter of 2013 following a period of decline.

Young entrepreneurs in Northern Ireland are to benefit from an extension to the start-up loans scheme which will roll out across the country this summer, business secretary Vince Cable has announced.

Net lending by banks under the Government's Funding for Lending Scheme fell by £0.3 billion in the first quarter of the year, data from the Bank of England shows

The proportion of SMEs using some form of external finance - such as a bank loan or overdraft facility - fell to 39 per cent in the first quarter of 2013.

A pilot scheme involving Europe's largest home improvement retailer has helped 200 small businesses and sole traders in the construction industry to access more than £500 million worth of credit.

A report by the Prime Minister's adviser on enterprise, Lord Young, has recommended removing the age cap on the Government's loan scheme for start-ups.

The chief economist at the British Chambers of Commerce has urged the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee to resist pressures to add to its quantitative easing programme.

Simplified rules for businesses to buy back employee-owned shares in the company have come into force. The changes are aimed at encouraging greater take-up of direct employee ownership and reducing the regulatory burden on businesses.

Urban regeneration initiatives must form a 'key plank' of the Northern Ireland Executive's economic policy, according to the chairman of the CBI in Northern Ireland.

The Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS), designed to boost lending to businesses and households, is to be extended until January 2015, the Bank of England has announced.