Christoph Rieche, co-founder and chief executive of iwoca
On May 20, the British Business Bank announced the accreditation of six new lenders to channel funding to small businesses under the UK government’s much-criticized Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS).
Bibby Financial Services, iwoca, Scania Financial Services, Triodos Bank UK, Ulster Community Investment Trust (UCIT), and Woodsford TradeBridge now join 68 already accredited CBILS lenders
That sounds like a lot of lenders. But Keith Morgan, chief executive of British Business Bank, explains: “Our accredited lenders have seen an incredible demand for Covid-19 business loan schemes since they became available.”
It is perhaps a shame, then, that it has taken two months since the scheme was announced to get iwoca on board, given that it is a specialist in exactly the type of lending to precisely the kinds of businesses it is supposed to help.
Loan benefits
Government statistics show UK businesses have to date benefitted from over £22 billion in loans and guarantees to support their cash flow during the crisis through three schemes delivered by the British Business Bank, including 40,564 facilities worth £7.25
