Much has been spoken about Ireland’s financial turmoil over the past couple of years yet the focus has tended to centre predominately on the economic struggles of both government and traditional financial institutions. Little has been mentioned of the emergence of so-called non-bank finance in light of increasing caution amongst Irish banks meaning that they are reluctant to lend to SMEs. In other words, the kinds of companies that make up Ireland’s economic backbone, the kinds of companies that... Read more >

The business banking landscape is changing – are you, asks CashFlows’ Nick Ogden. It’s fair to say the big banks will be keen to forget the summer of 2012. Whether it’s continued pressure over their failure to meet SME lending targets, IT crashes or old-fashioned, plain dishonesty, the UK banking industry is under pressure like never before to reform their practices. Against this backdrop though, UK businesses could be forgiven for shrugging their shoulders and saying ‘so what?’ When... Read more >

Business savings accounts. It pays to shop around when looking for a home for your reserves. Any successful business will ensure it has cash in reserve. Whether that’s for expected costs such as tax bills, to prepare for expansion or to cover those troughs that can occur in any business, having a buffer certainly makes sense. The question is what to do with that cash. While interest rates aren’t high for anything at the moment unless you want to borrow money, of course – it’s worth looking... Read more >

The Bank of England has decided to keep its record breaking base interest rate of just 0.5% steady for the time being. Although this helps to keep mortgage rates down and encourages spending, it does little to help savers. Saving in 2012 is not easy as a result, and hasn’t been since 2009 when the recession began. However, there are still ways to save that beat inflation and can help you put some money aside for the future. Santander saving accounts include cash ISAs, instant access accounts... Read more >

Government austerity measures are likely to have a severe impact on John Wilkes’ business, but he’s already planning for survival. The biggest issue John Wilkes and his firm ANDS faces is the current cutbacks in the public sector. And while business is good at the moment, he’s  well aware that now’s the time to prepare for a downturn. ANDS offers training and recruitment services to local authorities and their providers. “We tend to work in the areas such as land maintenance, waste management,... Read more >

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