Barclays Business Banking will host a Facebook Live discussion on Wednesday 18th March 2020 from 10 – 11am. A panel of experts from the bank, the China British Business Council and the Institute of Export and International Trade will help SMEs navigate the challenges and uncertainty generated by COVID-19
Ian Rand, CEO of Barclays Business Banking, said:
“Our network of relationship managers has been reaching out to SMEs across the UK to see if they require additional support during this time, as we do regularly when we see any events which may have an impact on our clients.
“Barclays is ready to help, whether that’s with managing cash-flow or any other support, and we encourage any customer who needs guidance to call us or contact their relationship manager.”
Existing measures in place:
Personal Banking Customers
- Encouraging customers to speak to our specialist teams who can help those facing financial difficulty
- Removing penalty charges to accessing fixed savings accounts early for those facing hardship
- Enabling customers to apply for a temporary increase on their credit card limit
A Barclays spokesperson said:
“Any customers suffering hardship as a result of COVID-19 can contact our specialist support colleagues if they are experiencing problems making repayments to their mortgage, overdraft, personal loans or credit cards. These customers can also access their fixed savings accounts early without paying any penalty charges.”
Business Banking Customers
- 12-month capital repayment holidays on existing loans over £25k
- Increased or new overdraft facilities and other working capital solutions
- Access to funding – 360,000 SMEs have pre-assessed lending limits which can be accessed via the Barclays app or online banking
- In addition, the bank has an existing £14 billion lending fund which we launched in 2019 as part of a three-year commitment to help SMEs build resilience during uncertain times.
Corporate Banking Customers
- Continuing outreach from dedicated relationship directors who remain in close contact with clients and will continue to assist with individual challenges such as working capital, liquidity, supply chains, and FX, to provide the appropriate support
- Provision of responsible support to clients that have a funding requirement resulting from the coronavirus impact
- Ready to aid short term cash flow pressures with measures such as capital repayment holidays, temporary increases to overdrafts and extending existing trade facilities
- New, extended or amended lending facilities²
- Client calls to discuss economic impacts, what we are seeing and expect to see in the FX and commodity markets, and supply chain impacts and options.
