Recent deal: Energy firm insulates working capital with a €50k boost

BusinessLoans.ie helped a building & retrofit contractor get a €50,000 working capital loan. They required funding due to soaring materials costs and reduced supplier terms. They had engaged their own bank who had suggested paying the balance of an existing loan first before they could assess the new application however, their CFO didn’t feel confident that approval on a new loan would follow, potentially leaving them in worse off position.

BusinessLoans.ie engaged a non-bank lending partner. They were approved and funded in days, with low paperwork requirements. The business owner was happy to have a more comfortable cash flow position and better cash purchasing power for materials.

Does your business want a fast finance quote? Call the BusinessLoasn.ie team on 01 55 636 55 or email hello@businessloans.ie.

BusinessLoans.ie April 12th Hospitality Grants and Loans Update

As of Monday April 12th it’s okay for bars & restaurants to serve takeaway alcohol to customers. While takeaway pints were never against the law most businesses complied with the government request. As Micheál Martin poetically said “forget about takeaway pints”. However, now that people can travel freely within their county, or 20km from home if crossing county borders restaurateurs & publicans will see increased trade. Under licensing laws, there is a requirement for the sale of takeaway alcohol that it must be consumed a minimum of 100 metres from the premises where the drink was originally purchased.

The Outdoor Dining Enhancement Scheme

To combat the effects of Ireland’s mixed weather on your business, you could benefit from a grant up to €4000. It is for shelter & outdoor dining infrastructure and you can be prepared for full reopening & ending of the 100 metre rule. You can get this government grant only if you have a business that serves food. The scheme gives you 75% ex VAT of the cost of equipment purchased / installed, up to €4,000 per applicant. Only items purchased after June 1st, 2020 & up to September 30th, 2021 are eligible. Local Authorities administer it so you would need to reach out to them to claim this, or get more information from your Local Enterprise Office.

Loans

BusinessLoans.ie will be able to assist businesses with loan quotes as your trade improves. We are monitoring the situation with alternative lenders and their appetite for lending. The rule of thumb has been if the business is not currently trading they’re reluctant to quote. The first finance option likely to be available is based on your card machine. The partner credit teams will see how you were trading before the pandemic and look at the trade you’re doing when you reopen and hopefully make an offer. Then all going well, will top up the finance facility as turnover increases as lockdowns further ease.

There are other loans that will become more available as trade increases, from simple unsecured loans to asset finance for perhaps a food truck. We’re hearing Local Authorities are more open to offering places to pitch and this could be an important revenue stream to pivoting hospitality businesses this summer.

Talk to us about your situation. We’re here for you to organise loan quotes on hello@businessloans.ie or call 01 55 636 55.

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Irish State Bank has billions available for Irish businesses

The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) has done more lending in 2020 than any other year since its foundation. It has allocated over €2 billion in loans through various partners during the Coronavirus Crisis. A lot of this has been on the Future Growth Loan Scheme, as well as smaller schemes for Brexit. However, much of the €2 billion allocated to help Irish SMEs under the Credit Guarantee Scheme is still available. Why is this? The SBCI says "we are aware of some public commentary asking why SMEs have not taken up more of the capacity available under this scheme…the answer to this is that the €2bn capacity is an important statement of intent, that the capacity is there if needed.”

The BusinessLoans.ie View

It’s better to be over-capitalised than under-capitalised. If you don’t have a cushion of working capital and you wait until missed payments start stacking up in the bank statements before applying for loans you can find yourself in a position where you are getting declines and may only have higher interest rate loan options available or none at all.

There are a number of great free supports & mentoring from the Local Enterprise Office to set out a plan and see if debt funding is part of the solution. Enterprise Ireland has a financial planning grant worth €5000 for bigger companies. Finally, nobody knows your finances better than your accountant & they can help you assess your situation.

If debt funding is the right option we’re here to organise business loan quotes fast. Many of the loan options don’t have an early repayment penalty. That means, when the pandemic eases and your business doesn’t need as much working capital, you can settle the loan early and save money on what the remaining interest would have been if you let the loan run for the full term.

We’re here to help. Call us today on 01 55 636 55 for fast Credit Guarantee Scheme loan quotes.

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