Research conducted by chartered accountancy group Monahans in conjunction with the MHA, the UK association of accountancy and business advisory firms, predicts that 40% of SMEs expect their business to grow over the coming year.

The study, Funding and Finance, focused on SMEs’ experiences of funding and raising finance in 2013 and their expectations for 2014. The sample comprised over 225 SMEs from a diversity of industry sectors.

The Funding and Finance study also found that 40% of respondents expect growth of over 10% in 2014, while 58% of respondents found fundraising “very easy”, “easy” or “average”.

Over a third of funding in 2013 was for investment in property and plant, with 30% of respondents seeking advice from their accountants and 29% from their bank. Banks and asset-based lending accounted for over half of funding granted in 2013.

Respondents were asked about a variety of business topics such as research and development, employment and exports. Finance-based questions exploring sustainability, future concerns, banking and pricing were also included.

Ian Lloyd, relationship partner at Monahans, said: “There are exciting times ahead for SMEs that are financially strong enough to exploit growth opportunities.

“This is a great opportunity for the government and the finance industry to support businesses with clear information about available schemes.”