The UK Export Finance (UKEF) annual report and accounts show that 77 per cent of the exporters that benefited from finance and insurance from UKEF were small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and an estimated 7,000 companies in exporter supply chains also indirectly benefited.
Altogether, UKEF supported more than £800 million in sales overseas through its SME-targeted trade finance products, and issued £1.8 billion in export support.
The announcement comes a year into the Exporting is GREAT campaign, the government’s drive to empower 100,000 new companies to sell overseas by 2020.
Lord Price, minister for trade and investment, welcomed the results, saying, ‘Exporting can help businesses grow, and grow fast.
That means more jobs, more profits, more tax revenue and more benefit to society. By providing its innovative support to more exporters than ever before, UKEF is helping to make exports happen, playing a vital role in the whole-of-government push for 100,000 new exporters by 2020.’
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UKEF CEO Louis Taylor adds, ‘UK Export Finance’s mission is to ensure that no viable UK export should fail for lack of finance or insurance from the private sector.
‘This year’s results show that we are making significant progress in reaching a wider customer base. We will continue to be innovative and flexible, anticipating the needs of exporters and finding ways to meet them.’
The UKEF claims to have grown by 23 per cent the number of businesses that directly benefited from its support, having helped UK companies export to 69 countries.
The organisation supported more than £800 million of new UK export contracts via our trade finance products. These products have now supported nearly £3 billion of UK export contracts since they were introduced in 2011 in response to the economic downturn, including £1.8 billion of contracts won by SMEs.
The UKEF issued a total of £1.8 billion of export support, and more than 7,000 companies are estimated to benefit from UKEF’s support via exporter supply chains.
Further reading on exporting
