This autumn marks a decade since the global financial crisis hit in 2008 and the shockwaves spread across all areas of the UK economy. The following two years saw both banks and businesses retrenching as a result of the tough economic environment, with new bank lending to SME customers falling to a low of just over £38 bn a year.

In response and as part of efforts to rebuild relationships with the SME community and support economic growth, the government-backed Business Finance Taskforce was set up in 2010 by banks including Barclays, Lloyds, RBS, Santander and Standard Chartered. Bank of England monetary policy also underpinned the supply of wholesale funds for some banks and reduced the cost of capital.