According to recent industry research* there has been an increasing number of UK businesses in financial stress or distress, as the UK economy continues to flatline, with inflation, wage pressures and higher borrowing costs leading to companies working capital being squeezed.
Those under ‘significant’ financial distress jumping by almost 31% to over 550,000 in the past 12 months, with construction, food and drug retailers and general retail being hit hardest with increases in Q1 2024 of 38%, 41% and 39% respectively.
Additionally, the number of businesses in more ‘critical’ financial distress has leapt substantially over the past few months, with over 40,000 UK businesses now categorised as such.
Many of these businesses are expected to enter an insolvency or restructuring process over the course of the next 12 months, with nearly 50% of them in the construction, real estate, financial services and support services sectors. This is no big surprise, as a majority of these sectors are more highly staff intensive, so have been hardest hit by the recent significant upward wage pressure, with many businesses now finding it harder to pass these rising costs onto customers and end consumers.
As highlighted in our March newsletter though, there remains conflicting messages in relation to the wider economy, with GDP shown to have increased by 0.6% in Q1, moving the UK out of a shallow technical recession.
We all hope that this upturn continues throughout 2024, however, these periods can sometimes be the trickiest for many businesses, with orders increasing but limited flexibility from their current lender(s) which can lead to pressure on cash and the risk of overtrading. Add to this the uncertainty that the recently announced general election brings and I’m sure everyone agrees that we continue to operate in very interesting times!
At Navigate we continue to work with various lenders who are willing to support businesses transitioning from stressed times into a period of growth by providing clients with more flexible facilities, as well as those that deliver funding solutions in traditionally challenging lending sectors, such as construction. We also have the benefit of being able to lean on the experience of Steve Stokes (non-exec director) to provide additional advice and guidance on our more distressed assignments.
As always, it’s best discuss new lending requirements as early as possible in order to ensure the best funding solution is secured. So if you’re finding your working capital is being squeezed and/or you require some additional funding to help the business through challenging times, please do not hesitate to contact a member of our team.
*data taken from Accountancy Age article on Begbies Trayors “Red Flag Research” dated 29 April 2024
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