Financing business

The Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS), designed to boost lending to businesses and households, is to be extended until January 2015, the Bank of England has announced.

The Government-backed business bank has launched its first phase of funding, worth £300 million, to help small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) access finance.

The new state-backed business bank will offer £3.9 billion of capital to boost lending to small and medium sized businesses, business secretary Vince Cable has unveiled.

Small businesses remain sceptical about the Government's drive to hand local authorities more control over how they spend public money in their area, according to research from the Forum of Private Business.

The east of England is the UK's fastest growing exporter to countries outside the European Union. The total value of exports from the region reached £6.7 billion during the final three months of 2012.

The need for growth measures in next month's Budget has become even more pressing since the downgrading of the UK's AAA credit rating by ratings agency Moody's, according to the director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC).

The Government should press ahead with the implementation of its business bank to support firms with the potential for growth, according to a leading business network.

More than 10,000 small and medium-sized businesses have accessed £1.04 billion worth of loans through the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme, according to research by Durham Business School.

A new £5 million loan fund aimed at individuals, SMEs and micro-sized businesses in Northern Ireland has been announced by the country's enterprise minister Arlene Foster.

UK banks will be forced to separate everyday high-street and retail banking operations from their investment arms under the Banking Reform Bill, announced by the Chancellor George Osborne.