Henry Howard Finance boost asset finance provision

Henry Howard Finance has secured a £51m facility from the British Business Bank’s Enable Funding programme.

The facility, which is 50% guaranteed by the European Investment Fund, will allow Henry Howard to extend its asset finance funding to a larger portfolio of smaller UK businesses.

The funding will be used to increase Henry Howard Finance's provision of asset finance for smaller businesses.

Mark Crook, co-founder and chief operating officer at Henry Howard Finance, said: “We are delighted to be working with the British Business Bank to boost much needed funding for SME asset procurement.

“Access to asset finance is a major barrier to growth for many small businesses. We hope the new facility will remove this barrier and allow more SMEs to grow and prosper.”

Keith Morgan, British Business Bank CEO, added: “Henry Howard Finance has a proven track record in providing much-needed asset finance to small businesses and this facility will help it significantly increase its asset finance lending to smaller businesses across the UK.

“This is the third transaction in our Enable Funding programme which has now provided a total of £202m to non-bank asset finance providers.”

And Pier Luigi Gilibert, EIF chief executive, concluded: “We are very pleased to see that our collaboration with the British Business Bank is working so well in supporting UK SMEs.

“This new EIF guarantee on the asset finance funding facility now brings the total finance available under the Enable programme to more than £200m, for UK entrepreneurs.

“In addition, we have recently further developed our collaboration with the British Business Bank by signing a new EC-backed guarantee transaction.”

The Enable Funding programme is delivered by British Business Bank on behalf of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.