We partnered up with Swoop to expand our service offering to our clients and to answer a common client question…
“Where can I get access to funding for my business?”
In order to grow, your company is likely to face the need for additional capital, which can be obtained in one of three main ways: equity, debt, or grant. This blog aims to simply explain these options to enable you, as a small business owner in Ireland, to make better decisions about your company’s financial future.
Equity Finance for SMEs
Equity financing involved the sale of your company’s shares, and giving a portion of the ownership of the company to investors in exchange for funds. The proportion of your company that will be sold depends on how much has been invested in the company, and what that investment is worth at the time of the financing.
In the very early stages of business, the most likely route to equity funding is through Angel investment. If your business is a little more established, generally over two years old and you can show some level of success, you may find interest in venture funds, family offices, and tier one investment. We can help you examine the pros and cons of all these options, and more.
Debt Finance for SMEs
Debt finance is simply the term used for different ways of borrowing money or taking out loans. It is an arrangement between you and the lender to borrow a capital sum on the condition that is paid back in full at a later date. Interest is accrued on the debt and paid independently of the capital repayment schedule.
Unlike equity, debt does not involve relinquishing any share in ownership or control of your business.
In the very early days there are startup loans available, and you may consider leasing or hire purchase. Beyond this stage there are numerous financing options available – peer to peer, invoice finance, crowd funding, IP funding, asset finance, and merchant finance, to name a few – the most suitable for your business will depend on a number of factors. We can walk you through your options and ensure you are the only put forward to the most appropriate providers.
Grants for SMEs
Small business grants, although not easy to win, remain one of the best sources of funding available to new, developing and established small businesses. The majority of business grants are funded by national, local or European government to; support key grown regions, stimulate technological advance through research and development, support our aging society, promote sustainability and clean growth, improve the future of mobility, and to make the economy (local and national level) more competitive in a specific sector. Overall these grant schemes generally seek to empower small and medium businesses to grow the economy and in the process, create jobs.
Grant offerings are opening and closing continuously, making it difficult to keep track, so Swoop’s platform provides constantly updated access to numerous grant providers. Swoop also recognise the specific skills required to fill out grant applications, and provide an expert service in assistance with this.
Through a combination of Swoop’s funding experience, superior technology and 1000+ providers, Swoop can assess your needs quickly and match you to the right funding solution.
In order to get your company in front of your potential investors, the platform only requires you to fill in one super-form, and within a few minutes Swoop will be able to assess and match you to suitable providers. On top of that, as your information changes and the market changes, they will update you in real time with funding solutions that best suit your market needs.
To learn more about this partnership and what it means for you and your business, book in a meeting with us. We look forward to discussing your growth plans and goals for the coming year.
Set up an account on our portal here to compare and select the right funding options for your business, covering loans, grants, equity and to see how your business can make savings.