Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak took further action to support firms affected by the coronavirus crisis by bolstering business interruption loans for small businesses and announcing a new scheme for larger companies. The Indian-origin finance minister revealed that more than 90 million pounds of loans to nearly 1,000 small and medium sized firms have been approved under the government's Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) since its launch last week.
And a government-backed scheme to provide financing to larger companies, being operated by the Bank of England, has also provided almost 1.9 billion pounds of support to firms and a further 1.6 billion pounds has been committed. 'And now I am taking further action by extending our generous loan scheme so even more businesses can benefit. We have also listened to the concerns of some larger businesses affected by Covid-19 and are announcing new support so that they can benefit too.
'This is a national effort and we'll continue to work with the financial services sector to ensure that the 330 billion pounds of government support, through loans and guarantees reaches as many businesses in need as possible,' he said.
To maximise the support available, Sunak said the CBILS will be extended so that all viable small businesses affected by the virus, and not just those unable to secure regular commercial financing, will now be eligible should they need finance to keep operating during this difficult time.
The government said it is also stopping lenders from requesting personal guarantees for loans under 250,000 pounds and making operational changes to speed up lending approvals, with the first 12 months of interest and fees covered by the state.
The new Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) will ensure that more firms are able to benefit from the government-backed support during this difficult time. It will provide a government guarantee of 80 per cent to enable banks to make loans of up to 25 million pounds to firms with an annual turnover of between 45 million and 500 million pounds.
