The basics of getting a business loan
The basics of getting a business loan are much the same as those for getting a personal loan. There are, however, some important differences in how those principles are applied. Here is a quick guide to what you need to know about applying for a business loan. You need to be clear about why you want the loan There are [...]
St Andrews Charity Donation
Before Christmas, we decided that instead of spending a lot of money on hampers and gifts for our partners and investors as we have done in the past, we would put that money towards helping a local charity - St Andrew’s Hospice. This is the message we sent out to our clients:- “Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas [...]
Understanding bridging finance
Bridging finance, as its name suggests, is a form of financing which, as its name suggests, is intended to “bridge the gap” between you needing funds and funds becoming available. Here are some of the ways it can be used and how it compares to alternatives. Buying a property This is probably the best-known use of bridging finance, certainly in [...]
Four common investment mistakes (and what to do about them)
Investors are only human and humans make mistakes. This means that investors can make mistakes and, interestingly, there are some mistakes investors make on a regular basis. Here are four of them and what you can do about them. Failing to set SMART goals The SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Targets) concept may be one of the biggest cliches around, [...]
Lessons to be learned from Woodford’s fall
As the old saying goes, hindsight is always 20/20. Every time a well-known figure or company plummets down to earth with a bump, the subsequent inquest picks up indications which could, and arguably should, have been spotted well in advance. The rogues’ gallery of the financial world now has a new member, Neil Woodford, so in the best tradition of [...]
Could your business benefit from the new government initiative?
Recently, there have been two government initiatives which have the potential to make a huge difference to the lives of people who live in the country. The first is the push to roll out broadband internet into rural areas and the second is the Growth Programme which will provide grants for rural start-ups and businesses. The fund for the scheme [...]
Raising money for your business
Just as parents of young, growing children always seem to be needing to find money new shoes and clothes, so owners of young, growing businesses may have a need to find money to make the most of new growth opportunities. Unfortunately, this isn’t necessarily as easy as it sounds. Fortunately, there are still opportunities if you are prepared to cast [...]
Is your business secure?
These days cybersecurity is often headline news, especially when a “big-enough-to-know-better” company ends up being the victim of a cyberattack which exploited weaknesses in their own security. Additionally, while GDPR is no longer the main topic of discussion in the business media, it still pops up on a regular basis. While both cybersecurity and data privacy is, of course, very [...]
Understanding economic data
There’s an old joke that if you put 10 economists in a room and asked them to discuss a topic, you’d wind up with at least 20 different opinions on it. While this may be a bit unfair, it is reasonable to say that economic data can be notoriously complicated and open to interpretation. It is also continually subject to [...]
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