MOTONOVO’S growth in lending to SMEs is in stark contrast to the broader picture reported by the Federation of Small Business (FSB), which has said recently that SME finance applications had plummeted to the lowest level on record00.

It’s a situation that saw the FSB’s national chair, Martin McTague, notie that “lenders pulling up the drawbridge for small firms will threaten our already faltering economic recovery”.

MotoNovo, which has enhanced its business finance capability, matching this with a desire to increase market share in the new and used vehicle financing sector, has aligned its ambition with action;

Over the past 12 months, MotoNovo has delivered;

• 50% growth in lending volumes to corporate customers
• 22% growth in LCV lending volumes
• 55% growth in lending volumes to SMEs to purchase cars

In total, the business has helped SMEs by providing well over £100M of vehicle finance over the last year and as MotoNovo’s Commercial Director Debbie McKay said, the business plans to keep growing even in a more challenging market;

“We remain very ambitious for ourselves and our dealers in terms of SME lending. The FSB’s research on SME borrowing notes that while 61% of businesses seeking funding sought traditional overdraft and loan products, only 25% applied for asset-based finance, a definition that included invoice finance.

“While not immune from the prevailing economic conditions, dealer finance can be very competitive and has the advantage of being ‘secure’, which typically helps acceptance levels. Dealer finance is also quick and easy to set up and frees up other borrowing. We want our dealers and their customers to appreciate these points because our dealer finance is very much open to helping SMEs.”