Latest figures from the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) show that asset finance new business (primarily leasing and hire purchase) grew in February 2019 by 15%, compared with the same month last year.

The commercial vehicle finance and IT equipment finance sectors reported new business growth in February of 36% and 10% respectively, compared with the same month in 2018, while business equipment finance grew by 8% over the same period.

Geraldine Kilkelly, head of research and chief economist at the FLA, said: “Over the last three months, the asset finance market has reported double-digit growth in new finance provided to both SMEs and larger businesses for investment in a broad range of machinery and equipment.

“Asset finance has proved particularly popular with SMEs, achieving the highest application success and satisfaction rates in 2018 compared with other external finance products.”