Scots smaller firms have tapped recovery scheme for £230m, says British Business Bank

The British Business Bank (BBB) has revealed that about £230 million has shored up smaller businesses in Scotland via the Recovery Loan Scheme as they steer a path towards a sustainable recovery.

The government-owned business-development bank accredited the lenders that have offered the £229.7m of total funding offered through 1,148 facilities, of which £205.7m has been drawn down through 1,054 facilities.

The amount offered from the scheme in Scotland represents 5 per cent of the national total, broadly in line with the relative size of the nation’s business population, said the BBB. It added that UK-wide, £4.51bn of lending altogether has been offered through more than 20,643 facilities, of which £3.83bn has been drawn down through 18,338 facilities.

The BBB said the Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS) launched in April 2021, with the UK government extending the scheme by six months to 30 June this year with some adjustments to its terms.

The government guarantees the majority of each loan, while the borrower remains 100 per cent liable for the debt, and Westminster has just announced a successor to the RLS, which will open for applications next month, the business bank also noted.

Susan Nightingale, the BBB’s UK network director for Scotland, said: “Around 1,000 businesses across Scotland have taken out loans under the Recovery Loan Scheme. This will better position them to confront both the challenges and opportunities that are ahead.”

The BBB recently said it had found that Scotland has once again emerged as the top spot in the UK for equity investment in university spin-outs, after the organisation revealed that equity investment in Scotland’s smaller businesses hit record levels last year.