Paul Beveridge, managing director at KBC Business Capital, discusses why asset-based finance is providing much needed headroom for growing businesses.

What deals have you done?

Not so long ago we provided £3 million of integrated asset-based lending (ABL) facilities to Momenta Holdings to fund a management buy-out from LDC, and a
£15 million facility to Pulse Healthcare to support its growth plans.

Is demand increasing?

This year started slowly due to the economic collapse. People neither felt confident about refinancing or to invest or acquire. Since June, both stability and confidence have returned, along with the demand for ABL, which has also benefited from being one of the few parts of banks being open for business.

What sectors are active?

We focus on businesses with assets, which tend to be more “old economy”, i.e. businesses in manufacturing or distribution. We are seeing increased demand from both of these areas.

Financially, what do you look for in a company?

We must be able to get a fix on where exactly the business is today (as opposed
to historical accounts) and a set of projections we can believe.

What’s your outlook for 2010?

History shows us that as the economy pulls out of recession, a company’s working capital becomes stretched, with banks typically not flexing to meet the increased demand. ABL is fantastically well positioned to meet this challenge.

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Paul Beveridge
Managing Director
KBC Business Capital
8-14 The Broadway
Haywards Heath
West Sussex
RH16 3AP
 
Tel: 01444 485820