The banking and finance industry has approved more than £22bn in loans to 505,040 businesses so far through the three major government backed lending schemes, new figures published by the Treasury have revealed.

UK Finance added that in the past week alone, lenders have provided more than £7bn to businesses through the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS), the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) and the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS).

Lenders have now provided £14.18bn through the BBLLS in the two weeks since its launch, having risen by £5.8bn in the past week. The number of loans approved has increased by 73% to 464,393, meaning that on average more than 33,000 loans have been granted each day since the scheme launched on 4 May.

Through the CBILS, UK Finance announced that £7.25bn has now been approved to 40,564 businesses, and added that lenders have also been helping small businesses who have both begun and completed applications for loans of up to £50,000 through this scheme to switch to a Bounce Bank Loan should they wish.

The figures also showed the number of mid-sized and larger UK businesses who have received financial support through the CLBILS increased to 86, with total lending of £590m. Changes announced by the Treasury this morning mean that businesses will now be able to apply for loans of up to £200m through this scheme.

The number of lenders accredited by the British Business Bank under the Government’s major lending schemes is also continuing to rise, and UK Finance highlighted that businesses can now access finance through the CBILS from almost 70 providers, and the BBLS from 17 lenders, to provide firms a wide range of choice from high street banks to alternative finance providers.

UK Finance chief executive, Stephen Jones, commented: “The banking and finance industry is committed to helping businesses get through these tough times, with over £22bn of lending provided to almost half a million businesses through government-backed schemes so far, and a further £18.8bn drawn under bank arranged commercial paper facilities.

“Banks stand ready to support businesses large and small, and the changes announced by the Treasury mean firms can access loans from £2,000 to £200m through the coronavirus loan schemes.

“These are just one part of a range of measures from the industry available to businesses including extended overdrafts, capital repayment holidays and asset-based finance. It’s important to remember that any lending provided under government-backed schemes is a debt not a grant, and so firms should carefully consider their ability to repay before applying.”

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