Yorkshire SMEs owed thousands in invoices

Businesses in the county also own an average of almost £438,882 of assets that could be used to fund further growth, a 152 per cent increase on 2014, when SMEs in the region owned an average of £173,859 in assets.

This is according to the latest research by Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking Business in Britain.

Together, the figures suggest a lack of understanding of alternative funding options is holding Yorkshire SMEs back.

And the forecast for this year is even worse, with 21 per cent of SMEs expecting more of their customers to demand deferred payment terms in the next six months.

Clare Boswell, north east area director at Lloyds Bank, said: “36 per cent of businesses in Yorkshire told us that late payments were affecting their cashflow, and with the amount of money owed them in unpaid invoices, it’s not surprising. Yet having this volume of unpaid invoices – just like having thousands tied up in physical assets – needn’t prevent firms from having working capital to invest in growth.”