package to UK SMEs throughout 2009, with asset finance arm Lombard
to play a major part in the distribution. The move, announced on
February 5, follows up on the bank’s January promise to increase UK
lending by £6 billion, and will involve the creation of 12 regional
funds worth £250 million.
division of the funds between different lines of business, with the
type of lending offered to SMEs being driven by customer needs
instead. For example, an applicant seeking to take out traditional
debt finance might decide after consultation with an RBS
relationship manager to look towards asset finance or invoice
financing options alternatively.
Particularly in areas such as Wales, where recent research by
Chaseblue Finance has found 40 percent of SMEs making use of asset
finance already, the new funds are expected to boost Lombard’s
business volumes significantly.
Whereas the package will give Lombard deeper pockets for
traditional asset finance lending, RBS has also been keen to
publicise the possibilities of refinancing, with press material
emphasising “effective ways to release cash through using the
assets already owned by the business.”
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RBS services some 1.2 million businesses in the UK, and saw an
increase of 10 percent in business and commercial lending over the
course of 2008. SMEs will be able to access funds through 3,800
relationship managers based in RBS, Natwest and Ulster Bank
branches and business centres throughout the UK.
