FinTech Players Still Jockeying For Government SME Funding Scheme Position

The tumult of news continues. Some of the FinTech sector’s players are jockeying for position ahead of the return of whatever it is we’re going to call normality once the Covid-19 epidemic has abated.

Nucleus Commercial Finance has launched a new lending product to help UK SMEs borrowing through the government’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) top-up funds.

The new line of funding, named Business Growth Loans, allows companies to borrow up to £25,000 as the government-backed scheme comes to an end with a term of six months. Qualifying businesses will have the option to apply for a top-up every quarter. 

CBILS will finish on 31 March but will be replaced by a new scheme announced in last week’s budget.  

Chirag Shah, CEO, Nucleus Commercial Finance comments: “We continue to be fully supportive of CBILS and are proud to have lent a total of £180m to date through the scheme. Our lending through CBILS means we can see the additional support businesses currently require and the funding gap it will leave once the scheme ends. This has driven us to design a product that will continue to provide businesses with the vital finance they need to survive and recover.”

The launch of Business Growth Loans follows Nucleus securing a new £200m funding line in January from two global investment management firms. The finance increases Nucleus’ capacity to support businesses in 2021 through this new product and a number of existing solutions.

Historical Performance And IFISA Process Guide

  • Money&Co. lenders have achieved an average return of more than 8 per cent gross (before we deduct our one per cent fee). 

That figure is the result of over £20 million of loans facilitated on the site, as we bring individuals looking for a good return on capital together with carefully vetted small companies seeking funds for growth. Bear in mind that lenders’ capital is at risk. Read warnings on site before committing capital.

  • Money&Co. has been lending for over 5 years and has only had two bad debts so far, representing a bad debt rate of 0.03 per cent per annum.

All loans on site are eligible to be held in a Money&Co. Innovative Finance Individual Savings Account (IFISA), up to the annual ISA limit of £20,000. Such loans offer lenders tax-free income. Our offering is an Innovative Finance ISA (IFISA) that can hold the peer-to-peer (P2P) business loans that Money&Co. facilitates. For the purposes of this article, the terms ISA and IFISA are interchangeable.

So here’s our guide to the process:

  • Step 1: Register as a lender. Go to the login page, and go through the process that the law requires us to effect. This means we have to do basic checks on you to comply with money-laundering and other security requirements.
  • Step 2: Put money into your account. This is best done by electronic transfer. We can also process paper cheques drawn in favour of Denmark Square Limited, the parent company of Money&Co.
  • Step 3: Buy loans in the loan market. Once you’ve put cash in your account it will sit there – and it won’t earn interest until you’ve bought a piece of a loan. It’s this final step that requires lenders and IFISA investors to be pro-active. Just choose some loans – all loans on the Money&Co. site can be held in an IFISA – and your money will start earning tax-free interest.

The ISA allowance for 2020/21 is unchanged from last tax year at £20,000, allowing a married couple to put £40,000 into a tax-free environment. Over three years, an investment of this scale in two Money&Co. Innovative Finance ISAs would generate £8,400 of income completely free of tax. We’re assuming a 7 per cent return, net of charges and free of tax here.

Once you have made your initial commitment, you might then consider diversifying – buying a spread of loans. To do this, you can go into the “loans for sale” market. All loans bought in this market also qualify for IFISA tax benefits.

Risk: Security, Access, Yield

Do consider not just the return, but the security and the ease of access to your investment. We write regularly about these three key factors. Here’s one of several earlier articles on security, access and yield.



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Disclaimer: Money&Co.™ is the trading name of Denmark Square Limited, Company Number 08561817, registered in England & Wales, authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The company is identified on the Financial Services Register under Reference Number 727325. The registered office is 58 Glentham Road, Barnes, London, SW13 9JJ where the register of Directors may be inspected. Denmark Square Limited (ISA manager reference number Z1932) manages the Money&Co. Innovative Finance ISA.