4Syte - Business Money December/January 2023

COVID
ENERGY
TAX
INFLATION
FUEL
WAR
Advance some cash,
Get paid quick,
Use 4Syte’s solutions
The mule won’t kick!

The 4Syte News
Special Edition
A Rapid Response, with a Human Touch
www.4syte.co.uk
2022 - A Year To Be Proud Of...
4Syte Group named...
‘SME Financing Company of the Year 2022’
We are excited to announce that 4Syte Group has been named
‘SME Financing Company of the Year 2022’ in the Greater London
Enterprise Awards!
4Syte secures back-to-back
ABL facility with NatWest to
support its continued growth
The new facility will fund 4Syte’s invoice finance arm by
refinancing the existing facility and providing additional
headroom. It will also support the expansion of our
product offering with the launch of 4Syte ABL Ltd.
4Syte Group has joined the NACFB
as a Patron Lender
We are delighted to have joined the National Association of
Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) as a Patron Lender. As
4Syte continues to grow and further establish itself in the marketplace,
we found 2022 to be the right time to join the association
and expand our multiple offerings to the wider broker network.
Legends of
Industry
Awards 2022
4Syte was a proud sponsor as Variety hosted their annual Legends of
Industry Awards, celebrating those who have achieved outstanding success
in their chosen fields of business and industry whilst raising crucial funds
for the charity in the North West.
4Syte Group named...
‘Most Client-Focused SME
Finance Provider 2022’
We are thrilled to have been named ‘Most Client-
Focused SME Finance Provider 2022’ in the UK
Enterprise Awards!
The Human
Touch
We had a fantastic first time exhibiting
at the Commercial Finance Expo at the
NEC. It was a great opportunity to catch
up with both existing and new brokers.
01245 377 032 | info@4syte.co.uk | www.4syte.co.uk | 4Syte Ltd

Effects of the Economy on SMEs
by Nick Sellars, Group Managing Director
It’s not easy to write sense when discussing the prospects of SMEs in this market. The
reason being the rapidly moving economic and political changes both domestically and
internationally. The old Chinese curse ‘May you live in interesting times’ certainly
seems to be mocking the world in what are dangerous and uncertain times.
Well, I don’t mean to be overtly political (I have tried to ask questions rather than spout my opinions) but private enterprise is one of the few areas that
generates growth for this country and makes a huge contribution to the exchequer by employing people and paying PAYE, National Insurance contributions,
VAT and Corporation Tax. A small company like ours which employs around 50 people is generating something like £2 million per annum in tax. So is it
good practice to create conditions so that business thrives, so that more people are employed, so that more goods are purchased and sold, and this wealth
filters down to everyone in society? It’s not so-called ‘trickle down’ economics, it’s a river that feeds the whole population.
Given recent shenanigans locally and internationally, there is a certain yearning for stability and the arrival of Rishi Sunak at No 10 has certainly calmed
the markets, for now. But where’s the vision and where does business stand in all of this? Many businesses benefited during lockdown through the
furlough scheme and CBILS loans and inevitably the population was warned that there would be pay back at some stage. Nonetheless, it could be argued
that these schemes were too generous and too long (at the taxpayers’ cost), and as a consequence served to create a society reluctant to return to work, or
simply retire.
I have been extremely impressed, however, with the desire of entrepreneurs and businesses to recover from lockdown and, dispute the doom mongers,
create jobs and generate wealth. That is what private enterprise does. What business also needs is an environment in which it can carry out business
without hindrance and red tape. The vision put forward by Liz Truss was therefore refreshing for business in at least there was some recognition that the
shackles of business were going to be taken off and an environment of growth put forward with bureaucracy cut. The reversal of NI and Corporation Tax
was therefore a boon for business and a promise that the UK would be a competitive place to attract investment and do business.
Alas, the huge commitment to subsidise the energy cap alongside perceived additional and aggressive tax cutting measures, without any explanation as
to how this was to be funded, spooked the money markets, and sent long term interest rates rocketing. So good vision, shockingly executed and too
much too quickly.
To counteract the market turmoil, we now have tax increases to business that make the eyes water and talks of more to come. Businesses have already
had to put up with increasing interest rates, increased energy costs, increased costs of raw materials and transportation, and demands for higher wages.
Is the increase of Corporation Tax by 30% good for business competitiveness and future investment? Will the consequences of increased costs lead
to business failure, lack of investment, loss of jobs and increased prices? And will the forecast extra income from Corporation Tax in the Treasury’s
coffers ever occur, if the profits of business are insufficient to generate that income? And finally, will overseas companies be attracted to the UK if
we are uncompetitive as a nation, or does the low value of the pound counteract that and make UK target for foreign investment?
So where do we go from here, and what does business need to see? Should inflation fall on the back of now falling energy costs and raw material prices?
Will we successfully cut red tape and take away some of the hurdles for doing business? And do we have a properly costed commitment to reduce
taxation over time with a longer-term agenda to make us competitive internationally and make the UK a target for investment?
In this rapidly changing political environment, I’m sure the coming few months will determine our destiny. If we have a plan and a vision, I have every
confidence in UK business that our natural enterprise will find a way to drive success.
What Our Clients Say
“Now the dust has settled on last week’s settling of the remaining debt from the “hole”, I thought a brief note to show my gratitude is in
order! In my initial dealings 2 years ago with Paul I said, and was confident when I said it, that I could settle that £600k hole in a few months
by simply re-mortgaging a few properties. With the combination of Covid, valuations coming in well under market values, the law that
prevented tenant evictions even if in arrears, numerous other factors working against me - that proved much more difficult than I had ever
imagined. Combined with the collapse of one of my companies and its subsidiaries, the sale of [another one of] my entities, etc., it has, quite
frankly, been a really rough ride for me. The worst two years of my life by far. So a note of thank you is in order – without your support and
patience, when you could so easily have foreclosed to get your money back, I would not be in the position I am now. I’d probably be
sleeping under some railway bridge somewhere. So, a big thank you is needed: THANK YOU”

The Pillars of 4Syte
Invoice Finance
4Syte Funding offers a range of SME invoice
finance services to suit your business.
Invoice Finance & Full-Service Factoring
Disclosed Invoice Discounting
CHOCS
Trade Finance
4Syte Trade offers funding for the whole of
your trade cycle. 4Syte Trade is available
exclusively to clients taking out an invoice
finance facility with a 4Syte company.
Purchase Finance together with Invoice Finance
Construction Finance
4Syte Construction Finance offers invoice
finance services focusing on SMEs in the
construction sector as well as other
contractual businesses.
Invoice Finance
Full-Service Factoring
Secured Lending
4Syte Structured Finance offers structured
business loans to SMEs which are secured
against commercial & residential real estate.
Term Loans
Interest-Only Loans
Bridging Loans
The Current Economic Climate
Q&A with Magnus Gundersen, Group Chairman
We hear a lot about the current negative economic climate. What is
your take on this?
I think it is very easy to talk yourself into a recession. It is true, the UK economy has had
many headwinds in the last few years – ever since Brexit, it feels like there has been
one thing after the other. First, we had a couple of years with Covid impacts and now
the impact of the war in Ukraine is being felt, with raw materials and energy inflation
having picked up significantly. However, we still see SMEs trading quite strongly in this
climate, with inflation being passed on in large parts. So even if the consumer is getting
squeezed, the underlying economic activity has continued quite well.
Are you optimistic or pessimistic in terms of the economy?
I am quite optimistic. It doesn’t mean we won’t see a contraction in the UK economy in
the near term, as I think that is inevitable. However, there is a lot of talk about inflation,
but inflation has a habit of mean-reverting as it is typically assessed as a year-on-year
measure. Current evidence suggests some of the drivers of inflation could come right
down as demand slows, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we could see inflation coming
down, and even see some disinflation too. What we don’t know yet is how sticky prices
will be with wage increase demands on the rise and there is also some evidence of
profiteering taking place. As it happens, we are likely to see more of a global slowdown
since the U.S. is raising interest rates to combat inflation quite aggressively. I would not
be surprised to see this aggressive policy move backfiring with interest rates suddenly
coming down again in the next year or so as the U.S. economy slows. It also destabilises
other countries’ own monetary policy and choices as the dollar has been increasing
against basically all other currencies, forcing other centrals banks to also increase
interest rates, even against their own wishes.
What would you say to the typical SME when you see what is
happening in the economy?
I would say “keep on going”! Most SMEs we serve are owner-managed so what they do
is typically their main livelihood and I think the SME market is much more resilient than
people give it credit for. These businesses have plenty of “skin in the game” and they
just keep going, usually as they don’t see any other option, or know what else to do but
nor do they typically want to do something else or just go on a payroll
somewhere. It’s easy to look at macroeconomic statistics and make inferences
but at 4Syte we are great believers in the UK entrepreneurial spirit.
Without getting too political, how do you see the current political leadership
challenges?
Without question, the recent year’s political events have caused an extraordinary amount of turmoil, with
rapid leadership changes not seen prior in our time. It is easy to look at immediate reasons for this and
make inferences, but at a philosophical level and Brexit aside, it is not unique to the UK that the current
political leaderships are, from a business perspective, highly uninspiring. Other developed countries have
seen events overtake the political leadership. Germany being a clear example, having been held up as
showcase of economic stability for the last few decades. This thesis is now being severely challenged. As
far as the UK is concerned, we seem to be regressing in terms of providing any economic leadership and it
seems to the outside world that the philosophy of government currently is more a muddling-through than
taking a proper lead. This may also in reality be as a cause of the conservatives being in power for so long.
As the old saying goes “power corrupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely”.
Is there any recommendation you would make to the current political leadership?
Taking no action is also an active policy choice, but Truss was right in that there is a clear need to shake
things up and get the UK economy motoring again. Increased taxes and bureaucracy are never good for
business nor growth. Important not to get sucked into the misunderstood notion of “politics of envy” as it
is only economic growth that will take us out of the current recession, and which will increase the wealth
factor for all parts of society. I think most politicians would agree with this across the political spectrum,
even if they interpret differently how the redistribution of wealth should be.
In your opinion, what should the UK be doing to make us all better off?
I think economic growth is still the strongest thesis to be pursuing. However, I think the future will bring
new technologies, so some of the old economic measures will be less relevant. There is a lot of talk about
low productivity in the UK, but some of this has to do with technology replacing a lot of traditional
economic activity. So even if traditional numbers don’t look as good, it doesn’t necessarily mean we are
any worse off. Just have a look at the smartphone and how much that has changed people’s lives, for good
or bad. How many services has this tech innovation not replaced?

Meet Our Management Team
NICHOLAS SELLARS A.C.I.B. MAGNUS GUNDERSEN PAUL BARKER SAMANTHA WILSON
PAUL FENTON
• Chair of Credit Committee for
underwriting new facilities.
• Expertise in corporate and
international lending, risk analysis
and capital markets.
• Director or MD positions in
independent Asset Based Lenders
since 1993.
• Responsible for overall strategy
and business development; contributes
to new product development and
structuring.
• Contributes to Credit Committee
and underwriting.
• A seasoned professional with
more than 25 years’ experience.
• Worked in the invoice finance
sector for over 20 years.
• Head of Origination across the Group.
• Business operational management
and direction.
• Firms worked for include Aston
Rothbury and IGF.
• Responsible for the Yorkshire office
and the Managing Director for
4Syte Construction.
• Highly experienced, having worked
for firms like Royal Bank of Scotland,
Davenham Trade Finance, Regency
Factors and Ultimate Finance.
• Over 25 years’ experience in the
Finance & Leasing Industry.
• Worked for firms like Credit
Lyonnais, Citibank, CIT, Universal
Leasing, D&D Leasing, General Asset
Management and more recently
Nucleus Property Finance.
The Power of ‘Foresight’
BYRON LAWLESS ACCA
SANDRA BLACKLEDGE
NATASHA SOUNESS
Qualities we expect our clients and partners to
experience in our dealings; forethought,
anticipation, forward-planning, circumspection,
attentiveness, vigilance, prudence, care,
caution, precaution, readiness, preparedness.
• Responsible for assisting with the
long-term strategy and funding of the
Group, as well as with the origination,
structuring and execution of ABL deals.
• Chartered Accountant with more
than 15 years of experience in banking
and finance.
• Worked for Lehman Brothers,
Investec, PNC and SVB.
• Responsible for directing financial
planning and strategy, and reporting on
financial performance.
• Qualified accountant with over 20
years’ experience in financial services.
• Previous roles held at Bibby Financial
Services and Deloitte UK.
• Responsible for credit, customer
management & part of the Credit
Committee for new facilities.
• Over 20 years in the invoice
finance business with experience
across operations and customer
management having managed 30
staff and 400 clients.
Whether you are a Broker,
Accountant, Solicitor, or any other
financial intermediary we would
welcome the opportunity to work
with you to provide the right
cashflow solution for your client.
Why? 4Syte will help you and
your client every step of the way,
and work with you towards finding
the right financial solution.
PAUL ROBINSON
• Over 30 years in the industry.
• Started at Barclays Sales Finance,
also worked for firms like Royal Bank
of Scotland, Eurosales and IGF.
• Undertaken a variety of roles within
the industry from Credit Control to
Invoice Processing to Client Manager,
Audit, Risk Manager and Compliance
Officer.
MATT SELLARS
• Responsible for maintaining first class
relationships and ensuring the security
of funds, minimising losses and bad
debts.
• Various UK Finance and accounting
qualifications.
• Over 6 years in the industry.
• Previous roles include Client Executive
and Client Manager.
JOHN ROURKE
• Responsible for managing a mixed
portfolio of clients whilst originating
new business for Trade and ABL.
• 17 years’ experience in financial
services, having worked across several
functions.
• Previous roles held with Lloyds
Commercial Finance, Bibby Financial
Services and Ultimate Finance.
How? If you are interested in
partnering with us to become an
Introducer, please fill in the form
at: www.4syte.co.uk/introducers
Contact us
info@4syte.co.uk | 01245 377 032 | Second Floor, Steeple House, Church Lane, Chelmsford CM1 1NH
Find us:
Our Insights
4Syte Ltd | Learn more: www.4syte.co.uk/blog