Banks are 'to blame' for SME lending drop

17/08/2010

Banks are being blamed for the lack of small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) lending.

Members of the Telegraph's Business Club have said it is untrue that weak demand has led to reduced lending in the SME sector, claiming banks are responsible for this.

On the group's forum, entrepreneurs called for banks to increase lending to small businesses and they highlighted a number of problems they had experienced in the banking sector, including lack of knowledge among front-line members of bank staff.

Richard Halstead, chief operating officer of drinks market research business Wine Intelligence, wrote on the forum's website that SMEs play " the role of the financial services industry's patsy: repeatedly hit up for fees, charges and extortionate rates of interest", the Telegraph reported.

Yesterday (August 16th), the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills published statistics showing the small business lending through the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme fell by almost 60 per cent last year.

Posted by Sam Williams