The National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) has revealed that it facilitated £1.25 billion in lending to small businesses in September.

This is a large increase over the £1 billion it facilitated in May.

The NACFB is launching Love Lending Week – a new initiative to promote lending to small businesses across the country and educate SMEs about the full range of lending options available to them. Running from 3rd – 7th November, Love Lending Week brings together 1,100 commercial finance brokers and more than 100 lenders in the UK with a message about their appetite to lend to small businesses.

Recent research conducted by NACFB has indicated that the vast majority of SMEs are still unaware of what’s available beyond the high street banks – or that those lenders can be accessed via an expert broker.

Marcus Grimshaw (pictured), chairman of the NACFB, said: “In recent years we’ve seen a burst of new lenders enter the market, to support many thousands of SMEs who have previously struggled to secure finance, despite being in a strong position to grow. Reaching £1.25bn lending in a single month is a very positive signal that lending conditions for SMEs are improving, and lenders old and new are making an impact.

“But we’re not out of the woods yet. There are still too many business owners who are in the dark about their finance options. We created Love Lending Week to spread the message that there are many lenders in the UK who are already lending to small businesses, and would love to lend more. We need to educate the country’s small businesses about their options if we’re going to give them the financial support they need to thrive.

“The industry is working hard to play its part. Government initiatives, such as the SME referral process, now need to be prioritised to ensure that UK companies do not miss out on crucial funding. If lenders, brokers and government can all work together, the lending process can be streamlined and securing funding will become a more achievable task for SMEs.”