Export finance is very simply funding your foreign invoices via way of an invoice discounting or factoring facility. This is a very specialist market in the invoice finance sector and as such only a few finance providers can offer a proper facility.

A number of these specialist invoice finance companies have a network of offices and associations spread around the world offering multi currency facilities and credit control. Obviously it is easier to obtain funding in developed countries however it may be possible to obtain funding in less developed parts of the world so long as your customer has a credit rating.  As with any factoring or invoice discounting product different companies are better in handling different sectors than others. Just because you go to your bank and they inform you  that it is not possible to factor foreign invoices it doesn’t mean it cannot be done via a specialist lesser known finance company.

A good independent finance broker will be able to introduce you to the most appropriate funders. Again it is important to be talking o two or possibly three finance companies so it doesn’t become a one horse race. However if you invite every tom dick and Harry of a finance company non of them will take you seriously an in our experience you end up getting a worse deal.

XL Business Finance has been helping business for over 10 years find the most appropriate funding partner. Give us a call today to see how we can help your business. Go on you know you want to!

A traditional cash flow loan from a banks point of view would be based on the turnover and profitability of a business. Before the recession cash flow loans were a prelevent form of bank lending.  They were often used in management buy outs to raise cash to buy the businesses along with other purposes. It was not out of the question to raise funds many times greater than the actual value of the tangible assets of the business.

During a buoyant economy this kind of lending is absolutely fine however as soon as things slow down, as they did recently, serviceability may become an issue and as such the banks find themselves with large loans to businesses with very little or no security. It is no wonder the banks have had such a slating recently for lending on this basis. The recession hits and the banks no longer lend on this basis and are accused of not lending any money. It appears to me that they dammed if they do and dammed if the don’t.

The alternative to cash flow lending is asset based lending whereby a bank or financial institution lend against the asset of the business. These are predominantly invoice finance companies that will lend up to 90% of a businesses debtor book, provide a commercial mortgage, lend approx 50% against any unencumbered machinery and also have the ability to lend against stock and in  certain circumstances provide international trade finance.

Whilst a bank has the ability to provide asset based lending they don’t tend to have the expertise as some of the specialist lenders and as such it is often worthwhile speaking to an independent business finance specialist to see what alternatives are available. XL Business has over 10 years experience in helping businesses in this often overcomplicated sector of business finance.

Any search on the world wide web will reveal numerous factoring and invoice discounting companies. Some of them will be actual lenders, others will call themselves “independent” in that they are not bank owned but they are still a lender and some ae brokers. In our opinion using an invoice finance broker will save you the most time and help you obtain the most appropriate funder for your particular requirements.

However there are two types of brokers. Some of the websites you see on the net are more like like cost comparison sites and will give the business the opportunity to compare quotes. These sites will link into half a dozen factoring and invoice discounting companies and as a result you will be bombarded with calls from half a dozen companies. We are not sure how this type of service can be providing best adviser particularly when no one actually speaks with you to discuss your business.

Surely the best type of broker is the one that either has a meaningful conversation with you in order to find out about your business or even better they take time to visit. At XL Business finance we have access to all the finance companies on the cost comparison sites and far more in addition. Following an initial interview or meeting we can pinpoint the two or three most appropriate invoice finance providers. And the good news is that this service is absolutely free. If XL Business Finance makes an introduction to finance company and they take you on board as a customer a fee will be paid by the finance company to ourselves. This fee is in no way loaded to the charges paid by your selves.  ALL invoice discounting and factoring companies pay the same level of fees because the broker market is one of their biggest sources of business. Therefore you can ensure you are getting  totally independent viewpoint

As you will gather if you care to read through any of blogs that this is a favourite subject of mine. And for good reason too. We have seen a number of what looked like very strong businesses fall foul to the banks in terms of having too many eggs in one basket. Although the banks will never publicly admit there appears still to be a tendency to call in their security if they think they have half a chance of clearing their debt. A bank that has a debenture over the business can appoint an administrator at any point they wish to do so. And how do they obtain a debenture. well you would normally give it when you take out an overdraft. Just one of those documents that they slip under your nose when signing all the other paperwork. Overdrafts are always repayable on demand and for this reason we believe that any form of invoice finance is a far better alternative.

Invoice finance which can either be factoring or invoice discounting cannot be withdrawn at a moments notice and so long as you are operating within the terms of the facility should provide you with a reliable and consistent form of cash flow finance. Unlike a bank overdraft which is secured by bricks and mortar and or a personal guarantee invoice finance is secured against your unpaid debts. So long as your customers pay their debts you should never be at risk. In addition it is often possible to obtain credit insurance for if any of these customers god forbid go bust on you.

Invoice Finance is the means of obtaining cash against unpaid invoices. More and more debtors or customers require up to ninety days credit terms in order to pay for their goods and services. Invoice finance provides up to 80% of these invoices immediately providing a valuable working capital facility.

Confidential invoice discounting is a form of invoice finance and as the name suggests the facility is provided in a format whereby your customers are unaware that you are discounting your invoices. Many businesses for a variety of reason would rather keep these matters confidential. However confidential invoice discounting is not on offer for every type of business. Invoice discounting can be susceptible to fraud and as such a business must be well established, be profitable with a sound and profitable trading history. A suitable credit control system must also be in place which the potential finance company will require to check o ensure you are capable of collecting your invoices.

Factoring which is similar to invoice discounting provides credit control as an additional feature. The factoring company will chase your customers ( usually by phone) on your behalf to ensure your invoices are paid in an efficient and timely manner. As your customers are aware that you are factoring your invoices and the finance company is in regular contact with your customers the facility is less susceptible to fraud.  Therefore just about any type of business will be able to obtain a factoring facility. New starts, loss making businesses, phoenix companies are all welcome to apply!

We had a request yesterday from a web development company wanting some form of  invoice finance. They had aboiut fifty customers on twelve month contracts all of which paid a ten percent deposit on the work to be done and then on a monthly basis thereafter. They were invoicing at the beginning of each month for the work to be carried out for the following month. Invoice financing only works for work that has already been carried out and that is being invoiced with credit terms of thirty, sixty or ninety days. Although we were not able to help we put this enquirer in touch with a company that can offer contract finance , a totally different product.

Invoice Finance can either be in the form of factoring or invoice discounting. As a business you provide goods or services to your customers and provide credit terms. Invoice finance provides immediate cash of up to 80% of these unpaid invoices on a revolving credit basis. Whether it is factoring or invoice discounting that you desire as son as your customer payd the outstanding invoice you receive the remaining 20% of the invoice less any charges.

Factoring provides crdit control in addition to the cash and is provided on a disclossed basis so theat your customers are awrae that you are factoring your invoices. Becauseth the factoring company is able to verify invoices this form of funding is also available for new start businesses, insolvent or businesses that have been struggling

Invoice discounting is provided in a confidential manner and as the finance company is unable to verify invoices this form of invoice finance tends to be made available for established businesses with a good performance history who are unklikely to take the invoice discounting company for a ride.

XL Business Finance has years of experinec in helping businesses choose the right invoice financing company for their particular needs

A quick search of the internet will reveal thousand of results for any invoice finance or factoring product. To work out which finance companies you should be contacting it may worth explaining the difference between the different results that you will find on the internet.

First of all there are bank operated invoice finance companies probably high street names that we all recognise. Secondly there are the independent lenders that do exactly the same as bank owned factoring companies however they are non bank owned and get their funds from other sources. Thirdly there are independent finance brokers like XL Business Finance that are not lenders but provide advise as to which will be the best invoice finance company for a particular business.

In our opinion we believe you will get the best advise from an independent factoring broker. They make their living making sure that they introduce the most appropriate funder to the customer. A number of sensible questions concerning the turnover, profitability , length of time trading quality and quantity of the debtor book will determine the most appropriate two or three funders. Not all finance companies are good at funding the same businesses. They all have their sweet spot and with over ten years experience in advising clients XL Business fiannce can find the most appropriate funder for your particular needs and requirements.

A good example we have dealt with recently was a business trading with a turnover in excess of £100m. The business was funded by a well known high street bank but the amount of the facility required was above the level this bank was comfortable with. The client had a number of meetings with other high street banks that again could not get comfortable with the required facility. We were able to recommend a couple of lessor known finance companies with the expertise and financial clout to take on such a business.  To date the customer is absolutely delighted.

At a time when it is becoming more and more difficult to obtain working capital through traditional banking facilities many businesses are looking to alternative and possibly more flexible form of finance. Invoice finance combined with stocking finance is an asset based finance product that can provide additional working capital over and above traditional invoice discounting and factoring facilities.

There are very few invoice finance companies that will offer a true stocking facility. There are some that they say provide finance against stock but it usually on the back of a factoring or invoice discounting facility to provide no more than 100% of your debtor book. In addition the loan or overpayment is only on a short term basis that will need repaying over a relatively short period of time. However there are definitely two or three UK based invoice discounting providers that provide a true revolving stocking facility. Again this must be provided in conjunction with the factoring or invoice discounting facility. As far as we aware there are no finance companies that will provide a stocking facility on a stand alone basis.

How much of a facility you can obtain against stock depends on the type of business you are in, how specialist the product is and the potential market for the stock. As a rule of thumb expect to get no more than 30% of our initial outlay. We are looking at a invoice discounting and stocking facility for one customer at the moment and their total stock is in excess of £2.m can potential provide a facility oF £600k over and above the 85% debtor book. This will provide much more working capital than the bank can ever provide and as such is known as a no brainer!

To make sure you are speaking to a funder that provides a true revolving stocking facility give XL Business Finance a call today and we will point you in the right direction.

One of the most common difficulties currently facing many businesses is that creditors are trying to shorten their credit terms. In extreme circumstances we are seeing many credit terms being completely removed. Suppliers are wary of providing credit on the basis that they probably have had their fingers burnt due to the vast number of businesses going into administration. This doesn’t help the business which are left particularly when it appears they themselves are struggling to get cash out of their own customers. Banks are being very difficult when it comes to increasing overdraft limits  therefore in order to obtain sufficient working capital many business are turning to more flexible forms of invoice finance. Additional working capital is also being obtained by refinancing existing capital equipment.

Once upon a time invoice finance such as factoring and invoice discounting was deemed to be a lend of last resort. Refinancing existing plant and machinery was considered unnecessary and expensive compared with what the banks could provide. How times have changed. Both these specialist areas of finance can provide a life line to many struggling businesses or indeed any business which isn’t getting enough working capital from their incumbent bankers.

XL Business Finance has been providing innovative finance solutions for over 10 years. We are one of the leading independent experts in providing refinancing options against existing plant and machinery. We also have a vast knowledge and experience of the many factoring and invoice discounting companies. No matter how difficult your situation or indeed how well your business is trading we can certainly add value to your business when it comes to obtaining the right funding solution for your business. Any search on the world wide web will reveal hundreds of different factoring and invoice discounting companies. We will use our knowledge and experience to provide only two or three of the most appropriate finance providers

As far as we are aware there are only two finance companies providing invoice finance to the construction industry. This is because construction tends to be very contractual and the majority of invoice discounting and factoring companies don’t understand it.

One of the providers is a high street bank and depending on the knowledge of your point of contact  we have had mixed reports as to their ability to provide a decent service. The other provider is one of the larger independents and their level of service is more consistent.

The problem with contractual invoicing is that that amount and value of work undertaken at a particular point can be very subjective. Most invoice finance companies don’t want to get involved with disputes over work undertaken in relation to larger projects.  As a rule the high street bank will only advance against certification whereas the independent will provide funding on application of the invoice. Due to the nature of the debt prepayments to be at a lower level than normal factoring or invoice discounting. Traditionally invoice finance will release up to 85% of your unpaid invoices however with these contractual deals it may be allot lower.

If your business is quite large than as a rule of thumb we would recommend the independent because they appear to have the consistency in understanding ow the invoice is structured. They also have their QS working for them to verify  the invoices if need be. The bank may provide a higher headline prepayment however in reality they are not as good as collating stage payments and as such they are more likely to disallow certain invoices and payments.

On the other hand if your business is relatively small the bank provider takes a view on their overall portfolio and as such if they fell they have a good mix of customers they may not look too closely as to what and ow you are invoicing and such you may end with more cash.