Member Article

Growth Street comments on CMA SME banking report

James Sherwin-Smith, CEO of Growth Street, comments on the publication of the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) final report into the SME banking market:

“Growth Street welcomes the final decision of the CMA to make APR information mandatory on unsecured SME loans under £25,000. In taking this step, the CMA brings much needed transparency to the commercial finance market where fees are opaque and tariffs are complex. This, coupled with the development of new, fully fledged comparison services for small businesses, are timely interventions while the FCA continues to review how SMEs are treated under the current financial services regulation.

“The decision is also a major victory for the #APR4SMEs campaign which, led by Growth Street, has been leading the sector in calling on politicians and regulators to bring forward this measure. It is often the simple, practical measures that have the most immediate and lasting impacts, which is why we are delighted the CMA has taken the decision to bring in APR information today along with broader comparison measures for SMEs.

“However, more can be done. Growth Street, and the #APR4SMEs campaign, will continue to call for APR information to apply to all SME finance products and will continue to make the case to policy makers for this broader measure.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Oakes .