Significant Rise in UK SMEs Borrowing Money Expected in 2023

The majority of UK SMEs (88%) plan to lean on business finance and credit this year according to new research carried out by solution-led fintech provider Nucleus Commercial Finance (NCF).

As the economic situation continues to challenge the outlook and stability of UK SMEs, it is revealed that only 12% of SMEs say they have no plans to borrow any money over the next 12 months – this rises to 29% when including sole traders and micro businesses. With interest rates still at record high levels, this is going to place a real financial burden on UK businesses.

The expected borrowing is not, however, solely to patch holes. The reason most commonly cited by small and medium sized businesses is to enable them to seize growth opportunities (38%). More than a third stated that they plan to borrow in order to help employees with the rising cost of living (34%). A similar number said that borrowing would be driven by a determination to use it to make the business more environmentally sustainable.

Rising costs and financial stress are still having an impact, however. A third (33%) of small and medium sized businesses expect to use business finance to cover unavoidable rising overheads, while one in five (20%) are likely to do so in order to pay off existing debt.