November Business First

Clearpath Finance gives SMEs Choice
new Belfast based lending solutions
platform, Clearpath Finance, is set to
Aaddress the need for alternative finance
in the SME sector in Northern Ireland. The
new company will draw down its first tranche
of loans totalling £15m by the end of October
2016, for a range of businesses across
Northern Ireland.
Clearpath Finance provides an alternative
source of lending as a commercial finance
broker working with a number of major
lenders across the UK. The company has
established excellent relationships working
with a select number of peer­to­peer lenders,
equity and mezzanine funders and private
lending consortiums to go some way to solve
the current liquity crisis in the local economy.
Conor Devine MRICS of Clearpath Finance
said; “The SME market has been seriously
under­supported by the main financial
institutions over the last ten years mainly due
to legacy debt and balance sheet problems
facing the local banks. We identified an
opportunity in the market to provide third
party lending to businesses and organisations
looking for additional financial resources
through our comprehensive experience and
research.
“By bringing together a number of larger
financial institutions that have the capacity to
support the SME sector in Northern Ireland
through Clearpath Finance, we will ensure
that business lending for the SME sector is
through a simplified, uncluttered and
expedient path.”
Small and medium sized businesses are
vital to the Northern Ireland economy and it
Whose data is it anyway, asks CIM Ireland
N
ew research released by the Chartered
Institute of Marketing (CIM) reveals a
shocking 96 per cent of consumers in
Northern Ireland do not fully understand
where and how marketers, brands and
organisations use their personal information
and data.
CIM’s ‘Whose data is it anyway?’ study
surveyed more than 2,500 consumers and
marketers nationally to gain their insight into
the use of personal data for marketing
purposes. It shows data discrepancies and
concerns to be worryingly prevalent across
the board.
More than half of all consumers in
Northern Ireland reveal they do not trust an
organisation to use their data responsibly –
the biggest issue being that their information
may be passed onto others without consent.
The report questions whether enough is
being done by brands to follow correct data
marketing practices and reassure consumers.
Chris Daly, Chief Executive of CIM,
comments: "Customer data is essential for
marketers to reach the right audience and
8 www.businessfirstonline.co.uk
James Gibbons and Conor Devine of Clearpath Finance
has been a challenging trading period for the ‘loan to’ value, ensuring that SMEs have
those organisations who wish to grow,
the access to funds when they need it,
support their business, employ staff and whether it is for additional cash flow, to fund
procure additional materials as they have an extension, or to grow their business.
found limited access to financial resources to “We have continued to make major
do just that. SMEs are continuing to diversify investments in our portfolio of businesses
their funding needs and Clearpath Finance is including establishing Clearpath Finance to
committed to providing those SMEs who wish provide a new finance stream for businesses
to grow with the support and solutions that across Northern Ireland.”
they require.
Clearpath Finance, fully regulated by the
James Gibbons, Clearpath Finance added; Financial Conduct Authority and a member of
“Many businesses in Northern Ireland are the NACFB, is a multifaceted finance brokerage
being turned down by the main street banks specialising in property and business lending
when asking for support for their business for to SMEs in Northern Ireland and the Republic
one reason or another. From the hospitality of Ireland. The company is a viable alternative
sector to renewable energy projects,
source of lending and is committed to servicing
Clearpath Finance, depending upon each the needs of the SME sector.
individual case, can offer up to 70 per cent of
Steve Woolley, CIM Head of External Affairs and Content, Julie McClean of PWC Research to Insight
Team and Carol Magill, CIM Ireland Network Manager
Find out more details about the ‘Whose
data is it anyway?’ report by visiting:
www.exchange.cim.co.uk/thoughtleadership/whose­data­is­it­anyway