By Adam Caplan, Partner

For several years, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have suffered from a lack of tailored support from banks.

With increasingly depersonalised and automated services, SMEs are struggling to secure loans, access competitive interest rates, and receive important financial advice from their banks.

Additionally, the bank outages over the past few months – such as the payday outages on 28 February – are having a significant impact on businesses. Being unable to pay employees on time or meet other crucial business costs can be hugely damaging both financially and reputationally.

However, where banks are failing, accountants are increasingly stepping in to support SMEs.

The accountant’s role has moved beyond preparing annual accounts and balancing the books, becoming crucial advisers who can help businesses improve loan applications and manage cash flow effectively.

Expert number crunchers

With an almost limitless number of business, savings, and investment accounts on the market, it can be difficult to know what’s best for your business.

As expert number crunchers, chartered accountants are ideally placed to calculate the impact of different interest rates, banking fees, and cashback options, enabling them to provide tailored advice on the best banking options for your business.

Multi-bank strategies

They say don’t put all your eggs in one basket – and you shouldn’t put all your business assets into one bank.

Adopting a multi-bank approach helps to reduce operational risk and ensure that one bank’s failure doesn’t ruin your business.

However, many business owners understandably feel overwhelmed by managing their banking, leading them to opt for a single-bank approach.

Accountants can help you open accounts with multiple banks and keep an eye on interest rates to ensure you’re getting the best possible deal.

Additionally, they can help keep your Know Your Customer (KYC) documentation up-to-date and support your business with passing the KYC and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) checks typically performed by banks when you open a new business account.

Better business advice

In a world of global financial uncertainty, small business owners need savvy business and financial advice.

Unfortunately, they lack the support they might once have received from banks’ relationship managers.

With years of experience and expertise, chartered accountants are well equipped to help you design achievable financial business goals and develop cash flow management and growth strategies to get you where you want to be.

Support with your business banking from FFT

It is a challenging time for SMEs in the UK, and the lack of financial and business support from traditional banks is only compounding the difficulties experienced by small business owners.

At FFT, our expert chartered accountants provide a comprehensive range of financial management services.

You’ll receive a dedicated partner who is there to advise you on every aspect of your business’s growth, development and operations.

Together, we’ll help you choose the best bank accounts for your business, get your finances in order, and ensure your money is working hard for you.

For more information about our tailored business advisory services, get in touch with our friendly team today.