White Oak UK announce interest-only furlough funding facility to support UK SMEs

24 April 2020

The Government’s highly anticipated Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) launched earlier this week. The temporary scheme, which supports small and medium sized businesses in continuing to cover the salaries of furloughed employees, enables employers to claim for 80% of affected employees’ wages, up to a maximum of £2,500, and has been extended to run until June 2020.

Whilst the scheme opened to an influx of online applications on its first day, with more than 140,000 firms applying for the grant, HMRC payroll rebates are not expected to be received until the end of April, leaving many firms to cover salaries from already pressured cash flow.

White Oak UK have developed a dedicated interest only furlough funding facility designed to help SMEs cover the cost of salaries due until payments from the scheme are released, enabling businesses to retain employees and meet forthcoming salary payments.

Andy Davies, Managing Director of Lease and Loans at White Oak UK, said:

“We launched the furlough funding facility to our existing client base last week and both take up and feedback has been excellent. The ability to finance this short-term pinch point whilst businesses await their payroll rebates from HMRC is a lifeline for many businesses.

“Cash flow is obviously a growing concern for business owners, with monthly wage bills typically the most significant outflow. We believe this facility gives businesses a little breathing space in the interim.”

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